Reason, Treatment, Symptoms and Diagnosis of Fever

Causes of Fever:

A part of the brain called the hypothalamus controls body temperature, which usually varies throughout the day from the normal temperature of 98.6 F.

Diagnosis of Fever:

Although a fever is easy to measure, determining its cause can be hard. Besides a physical exam, your doctor will ask about symptoms and conditions, medications, and if you've recently traveled to areas with infections or have other infection risks. A malaria infection, for example, may be have a fever that typically recurs. Some areas of the U.S. are hotspots for infections such as Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever.

Sometimes, you may have a "fever of unknown origin." In such cases, the cause could be an unusual or not obvious condition such as a chronic infection, a connective tissue disorder, cancer, or another problem.

Treatments for Fever:

Treatments vary depending on the cause of the fever. For example, antibiotics would be used for a bacterial infection such as strep throat.

The most common treatments for fever include over-the-counter drugs such as acetaminophen (Tylenol) and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) and naproxen (Aleve). Children and teens should not take aspirin because it's linked to condition called Reye’s syndrome.

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