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What Causes Prolonged Fever In A Child?
Question: My 13 year old son has had fever for 14 days. For the first week he had constant diarrhea and vomiting and lost 10 lbs. He has seen the doctor two times and a CT scan was done to rule out appendicitis and revealed an enlarged colon. We were referred to a gastro dr. and can't get an appointment for over a month. We had blood work done on Wednesday and the doctor said it was negative for mono and CBC was normal. He was also negative for the flu. He wakes up in the morning with a fever and it usually spikes up to 102 - 103 at night. He still has diarrhea, but only a few times a day now and he has his appetite back this week. The doctor is still waiting for two more tests, but wasn't inclined to even do the blood work and only did so because we demanded. Any ideas what could be causing the fever for so long? Today is day 14 of fever 102+ every day at some point.
Brief Answer:
Request further details please
Detailed Answer:
Hi XXXX
Thanks for writing in to us.
I have read through your query in detail.
It is important that I go through your son's CT scan report in detail to understand what is the structural abnormality with the colon. There are many types of colonic involvement specific for certain medical conditions.
I would like to know if he has been tested for enteric fever and typhoid, common causes of unexplained sudden onset fever associated with recurrent diarrhea and vomiting which may extend over days to weeks. If it is not entirely treated with proper dosage of medications for sufficient duration, it can relapse and cause symptoms lasting weeks.
Waiting for updates from your end.
Regards,
Dr.Vivek
Request further details please
Detailed Answer:
Hi XXXX
Thanks for writing in to us.
I have read through your query in detail.
It is important that I go through your son's CT scan report in detail to understand what is the structural abnormality with the colon. There are many types of colonic involvement specific for certain medical conditions.
I would like to know if he has been tested for enteric fever and typhoid, common causes of unexplained sudden onset fever associated with recurrent diarrhea and vomiting which may extend over days to weeks. If it is not entirely treated with proper dosage of medications for sufficient duration, it can relapse and cause symptoms lasting weeks.
Waiting for updates from your end.
Regards,
Dr.Vivek
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
My doctor just called and said the blood culture came back that he has h pylori infection. We also took my son to the ER yesterday and they did a stool culture and more blood tests to test for typhoid. My doctor didn't test for that last week. Do you think the h pylori by itself would cause that high of a fever and the extreme vomiting and diarrhea? He is getting antibiotics to treat the h pylori and we are still waiting for the results of the stool culture.
Brief Answer:
Possibility of mixed infection
Detailed Answer:
Hi XXXX
Thanks for writing back with an update.
H pylori infection presents without symptoms in about 35 percent of patients. However, a severe for of the infection can cause, vomiting, diarrhea and tarry stools, nausea and fatigue. This is supported with an ache or burning pain in the abdomen that's worse when your stomach is empty, loss of appetite, frequent burping, bloating and unintentional weight loss.
There also exists the problem of mixed infections (like typhoid) of moderate intensity which when present together, cause flaring of symptoms often in a recurrent distribution. Typhidot (serology for typhoid) can be done to check for typhoid.
The results of stool culture are equally important for treatment.
Regards,
Dr.Vivek
Possibility of mixed infection
Detailed Answer:
Hi XXXX
Thanks for writing back with an update.
H pylori infection presents without symptoms in about 35 percent of patients. However, a severe for of the infection can cause, vomiting, diarrhea and tarry stools, nausea and fatigue. This is supported with an ache or burning pain in the abdomen that's worse when your stomach is empty, loss of appetite, frequent burping, bloating and unintentional weight loss.
There also exists the problem of mixed infections (like typhoid) of moderate intensity which when present together, cause flaring of symptoms often in a recurrent distribution. Typhidot (serology for typhoid) can be done to check for typhoid.
The results of stool culture are equally important for treatment.
Regards,
Dr.Vivek
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Vaishalee Punj
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