With Covid-19, we've never taken it so much.
Chills, we sweat, quickly we take out the thermometer ... Oops we have the temperature!
Do not panic, we do not necessarily call the 15th. First because it is in season, then because it is not necessarily the coronavirus.
Is everything all right then?
It's more complex… “The fever is a symptom, it is not an illness in itself: when we say
I have a
fever, it is not like having a cold or a stomach ache, it is sign that our body reacts and fights, ”explains the doctor Sébastian Marciano, of the medical emergencies of Paris.
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How to take your temperature properly?
It can be against a viral or bacterial infection, but it can also be a reaction to anything else;
sunstroke, heatstroke or teething, in short, when you have a fever, something is happening, but it is not necessarily serious ”.
What is having a fever?
The human being is homeothermic.
It regulates its internal temperature itself so that it is constant (37.2 ° C) to preserve its vital organs (heart, brain, etc.).
But sometimes that thermostat goes up.
When can you say you have a fever?
“When your temperature is above 38.5 ° C.
This is the definition on which we agreed between doctors within our network, explains the emergency physician, from 37.7 ° C, we speak of a subfebrile state, it is the sign that we are brooding something is to be watched but you must not overreact, it is not necessarily worrying ”.
The intensity of the fever does not correlate with the severity of the illness: influenza is usually a mild illness, responsible for an outbreak sometimes above 40 ° C.
If the flu becomes fatal, it is usually through bacterial superinfection in fragile subjects.
However, the intensity of the fever may be of diagnostic guidance.
For example, it is rare for acute appendicitis to be accompanied by a temperature above 38.5 ° C.
Are we all equal when it comes to fever?
"Not at all" retorts the doctor and it is particularly spectacular in children.
"Some may have a 40 ° C fever, that does not prevent them from being in great shape: they laugh, they play, they eat, he explains, But others at 38 ° C are quite raplapla, because we each have our level of fever tolerance, ”continues the general practitioner.
He primarily looks at its effects on the patient's behavior.
“It is only if the fever is poorly tolerated that paracetamol should be taken.
The drug reflex must not be automatic, first of all, you must drink a lot.
It is the best remedy for fever ”.
Is extreme vigilance for the most fragile?
"In children under three months, any symptom of feverishness should be taken very seriously," he recalls.
As soon as an infant is over 37.8 ° C and does not present an obvious diagnosis such as a cold or bronchiolitis, I advise parents to go to the emergency room, explains the practitioner.
And in general, we never give, without the agreement of the doctor Advil or a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug based on ibuprofen to a child under 12 years of age, ”he insists!
As many families have it in their pharmacy box and it quickly brings down the fever, they are tempted to give it away, “Don't.
If the child suffers from chickenpox, ibuprofen can then cause necrosis of the skin, potentially fatal, we hydrate, we make him take paracetamol in weight dose every 6 hours and we call the doctor ”.
Is this a typical sign of Covid-19?
"If a doctor tells you, I know what Covid is and I recognize it for sure, I take it" smiles Sébastian Marciano.
OK, but fever or no fever?
Not necessarily, this is indicated by a European study published in April 2020 by around fifty ENT doctors and researchers.
They screened 1,420 patients with mild or moderate Covid-19 infection.
The most common symptoms observed were first headache (70.3%), loss of smell (70.2%), stuffy nose (67.8%), cough (63.2%) %), exhaustion (63.3%), muscle pain (62.5%), runny nose (60.1%), loss of taste (54.2%), sore throat (52, 9%).
Fever came at the bottom of the list (45.4%).
And another Chinese study, that one, noted that when one is infected with Covid-19 (except in severe forms), one suffers more from feverishness than fever with 37.5 - 38 ° C but this feverishness is not always observed.
This does not mean that we are not a carrier of Covid-19.