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Child Has Fever, Fast Heart Rate And Feeling Nausea. Should I Consult A Doctor?
Question: My child is four years old. Her heart is beating 200 beats per minute, and she is feverish and nauseous. She says her body "feels wierd" but can't describe it. Should we take her to the emergency room? It's the middle of the night.
Hi,
Thanks for writing to health care magic.
Fever may be associated with tachycardia. (increased heart rate)
But a heart rate of 200 per minute cannot be explained by simple fever.
I think your child is having a arrythmia and I advise she should be taken to the emergency at the earliest possible.
ECG done during the episode will confirm the diagnosis and corrective measures should be taken because some times oxygenation of the body is impaired.
Hope this helps.
Take care.
Thanks for writing to health care magic.
Fever may be associated with tachycardia. (increased heart rate)
But a heart rate of 200 per minute cannot be explained by simple fever.
I think your child is having a arrythmia and I advise she should be taken to the emergency at the earliest possible.
ECG done during the episode will confirm the diagnosis and corrective measures should be taken because some times oxygenation of the body is impaired.
Hope this helps.
Take care.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Mohammed Kappan
Thank you for writing.
About half an hour after after I wrote, and well before receiving your message, the Tylenol took effect, and my daughter's fever dropped, her nausea ceased, and she was relaxed enough to sleep. I assumed that all of the symptoms were related to the fever, having read that fever is often accompanied by a racing heart rate during infection, and recalling experiencing a fever many years ago that "shook" my body completely. Now that she is awake and happy, do you feel I should still take her to an urgent care facility, or wait for a scheduled appointment with her pediatrician tomorrow?
About half an hour after after I wrote, and well before receiving your message, the Tylenol took effect, and my daughter's fever dropped, her nausea ceased, and she was relaxed enough to sleep. I assumed that all of the symptoms were related to the fever, having read that fever is often accompanied by a racing heart rate during infection, and recalling experiencing a fever many years ago that "shook" my body completely. Now that she is awake and happy, do you feel I should still take her to an urgent care facility, or wait for a scheduled appointment with her pediatrician tomorrow?
Hi,
Thanks for writing to me.
My suggestion to take her to the emergency was based on the heart rate given by you. (200 beats per minute)
Normal heart rate at your child's age is around 95 to 110 beats per minute.
The heart rate increases by around 10 beats per min per one centigrade rise of body temperature above normal. So I felt a disproportionate rise of heart rate that cannot be explained by fever.
If your finding is correct then you cannot explain that with fever and heart rate of 200/min indicates arryhthmia or some other problem.
If you are not sure of your finding (you think there could be a error there) and child is comfortable and normal you may wait till the scheduled appointment.
You may contact me after you finish your follow up queries on the following URL...........
WWW.WWWW.WW
In such scenario the questions are directly forwarded to me .............. and I can answer your queries regarding your kid online regularly.
Hope this helps.
Take care
Dr Y V Siva Sankara Murty
M.D.(Pediatrics)
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
Thanks for writing to me.
My suggestion to take her to the emergency was based on the heart rate given by you. (200 beats per minute)
Normal heart rate at your child's age is around 95 to 110 beats per minute.
The heart rate increases by around 10 beats per min per one centigrade rise of body temperature above normal. So I felt a disproportionate rise of heart rate that cannot be explained by fever.
If your finding is correct then you cannot explain that with fever and heart rate of 200/min indicates arryhthmia or some other problem.
If you are not sure of your finding (you think there could be a error there) and child is comfortable and normal you may wait till the scheduled appointment.
You may contact me after you finish your follow up queries on the following URL...........
WWW.WWWW.WW
In such scenario the questions are directly forwarded to me .............. and I can answer your queries regarding your kid online regularly.
Hope this helps.
Take care
Dr Y V Siva Sankara Murty
M.D.(Pediatrics)
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
Note: For further queries related to your child health, Talk to a Pediatrician. Click here to Book a Consultation.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Mohammed Kappan
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