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Fever Health Article

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Description

Normal body temperature varies somewhat from one individual to another but displays a general range and pattern around the "normal" temperature of 98.6°F. Early morning body temperature may be as low as 97°F, and as high as 99.3°F in the afternoon hours yet still be considered normal. Higher temperatures may be observed in healthy people, but an abnormal elevation (pyrexia) is classified as hyperthermia, or fever. Fever results from a failure in the body's ability to regulate and dissipate heat. Any fever presents an unpleasant and uncomfortable state for the patient. Fever may cause the patient to experience fatigue, chills, sweats, nausea, and—in some cases—life-threatening conditions. When fevers occur in the elderly or the very young, the effects can be more harmful than in individuals who fall between those two age groups. The elderly may experience poor blood circulation, heart failure, an irregular heartbeat, or mental episodes. Children may lapse into fever-induced seizures. It is possible to treat fever with lukewarm sponge baths or bathing, removing excess clothing or bedding, and increasing the patient's fluid intake; however an important treatment is medication that lowers the body temperature to its normal range.

Causes

Fever associated with cancer can generally be categorized into four major causal groups: infection, tumors, allergic reactions to a drug, or allergic reaction to blood components in transfusion therapies. For cancer patients, fever should be considered a result of infection until an alternative cause is diagnosed. When a fever develops in a cancer patient, the individual must be thoroughly examined to determine the cause. A comprehensive physical examination should be administered by the physician and blood drawn for laboratory analysis.

Once a diagnosis has been made and treatment initiated, it is important to address problems created by the fever itself. It may be necessary to increase fluids and nutritional supplements. Because fever places increased demands on the body, this can be critical in restoring normal health for patients who may already be nutritionally compromised. Fever in a patient with neutropenia (low white blood cell count) represents the potential for a critical, life-threatening situation, and treatment should begin as quickly as the patient can reach the emergency room.

Physicians do not fully understand how tumors can cause fever, but certain correlations are well documented. Fever spikes may indicate that a tumor has grown or spread to other areas of the body, or that the tumor has produced some type of blockage. The fever associated with a tumor tends to be cyclic, and subsides with tumor treatment and recurs when the tumor returns or increases in size. In the case of drug-associated fever, the fever is an allergic-type reaction to a particular medication or combination of medications. Similarly, an immune response to donor blood cells is the typical cause of fever associated with blood components.

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