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Show Convulsions: High Fever By NANCY MOORE THURMOND THUR-MOND Convulsions: An extremely high fever in an infant over six months of age can cause him to have a convulsion. This should be reported immediately. If the convulsion occurs with high fever,, above 103 degrees F., sponge the child with cool water, wa-ter, plain or mixed with alcohol, alco-hol, to reduce the body temperature. tem-perature. A prolonged fever over 104 degrees F. can cause brain damage. IT IS important to keep an open airway in the convulsing patient. . A convalusion without with-out a fever is also an emergency. emergen-cy. Febrile or feverish convulsions convul-sions tend to run in families, so the mother should be more alert to this possibility if there is a family history of febrile seizures. sei-zures. If this is the case, you may want to ask your doctor to prescribe a sedative suppository supposi-tory to use as an emergency treatment. Fever: Fever almost always is the baby's response to infection. infec-tion. You can usually tell a baby with a fever by his list-lessness, list-lessness, irritability, and, above all, hot skin. Before you use a rectal thermometer, gently shake it down until it reads well below 97 degrees F. Grease the round bulb of the thermometer with petroleum jelly so it will insert easily. HOLD YOUR child face down, on your lap or on a bed, or you may want to have him lie on his side. Gently insert the rectal thermometer one inch to one-and-a-half inches into your baby's rectum and hold it in that position from two to three minutes. Avoid sudden movements which could cause the thermometer to break, injuring your baby. |