Normal body temperature of a child up to one year Komarovsky

Body temperature and thermometers

In one of the TV programs about temperature in children, Komarovsky reviews modern methods of thermometry. The main advantage of a maximum medical mercury thermometer is its accuracy.

Electronic thermometers are not always of high quality and are sometimes poorly tested at the factory. Therefore, after you have purchased an electronic thermometer, you need to double-check it based on the readings of a mercury thermometer.

In his video about a child’s high temperature, Komarovsky says that there is no big difference in where exactly the temperature is measured. By pressing your hand tightly to your chest, measuring the temperature in the armpit, you can get a result that is as close as possible to the result of measurement by the rectal method.

What to do if an infant has a low temperature?

A decrease in body temperature is usually accompanied by lethargy, drowsiness and moodiness. To improve the condition, it is recommended to carry out a set of measures.

1. Warm the child. Clothes and bedding must be dry.
2. Monitor the temperature in the room (at least 20 degrees).
3. Maintain a sleep schedule. Infants and infants should sleep at least 9-10 hours a day.

Body temperature in children under one year old varies between 36-37.7 degrees. This is a normal state, since the thermoregulation system is not yet fully formed. Parents should be alerted to indicators above 37.7 or below 36 if they are accompanied by a deterioration in the child’s condition - runny nose, cough, lethargy, moodiness, drowsiness. Depending on the cause of the deviations, a treatment method is selected - without drugs or with the use of antipyretics.

Childhood diseases

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Help without drugs

One of the most popular episodes of the “Doctor Komarovsky School” program is called “Help without drugs.” Evgeniy Olegovich explains to parents how thermoregulation works in a child. The child’s body constantly controls two processes: heat production and heat transfer. If a child has problems with temperature, parents are able to control such processes: increase or decrease the production and release of heat. This can be regulated without the use of any medications; it is enough to pay attention to what is happening to the child, his activity, nutrition, and environment.

Active sports, games, large hot meals, prolonged exposure to the sun - all this can cause a slight increase in body temperature.

Therefore, in this case, parents should, first of all, eliminate the factor that provokes hyperthermia.

If for some reason a child develops a high temperature, the parents’ actions should be as follows:

• adjust the ambient temperature;
• humidify the air;
• provide plenty of fluids;
• do not overfeed the child;
• put to bed;
• when the thermometer readings are 38-40, use antipyretic drugs.

You should not get carried away with antipyretic drugs, because... they reduce the level of interferon in the body, which helps the child fight infection. In addition, medications that lower fever cannot effectively act on the body if the blood is too thick. This is why it is very important to ensure your child drinks plenty of fluids.

E. Komarovsky argues that the most important task of parents is to create conditions under which the child will be able to cope with the temperature on his own. When a child experiences hyperthermia, it is appropriate to use physical methods to influence the process of thermoregulation.

Before using rubbing with vodka or vinegar, you need to remember that the substance penetrates the body through the skin.

Alcohol and vinegar will also evaporate into the air - the child may experience poisoning or an allergic reaction. Cold baths are also not recommended for children, because... There is a risk of skin vascular spasm.

If the patient has not only a high temperature, but also pale skin, you should immediately consult a doctor. You can self-medicate only in cases where the child’s skin is pink.

Reasons for deviations from the norm

Disturbances in the processes of thermoregulation in children under one year of age are a sign of not only an infectious or cold disease.

Fever

High rates depend on the physiological characteristics of the baby, his age and external factors.

Common causes of deviations from the norm are:

1. Immature thermoregulation system - in infants up to a month old, the temperature reaches 37.7, in the first month of life and the next two months it is 37-37.5;
2. Eating is work for a baby, and the smaller the child, the more energy is spent. Body temperature often rises while eating, especially in a breastfed baby. The baby makes maximum effort while sucking the breast.
3. Overheating - excessively wrapping the baby in hot weather or in a warm room leads to the fact that heat exchange is hampered and the baby overheats. Most often, children affected are up to a month old, from 1 to 4 months.
4. Vaccination - the vast majority of vaccinations cause an increase in degrees from 37.5 to 38 and above.
5. Teething – during the growth of incisors, canines and molars, the thermometer readings are above 37.0. In some cases, an increase to 38-39 degrees is possible. At this time, there is a runny nose with clear snot, increased salivation, but often teething occurs without snot. The high temperature lasts no more than 3 days.

Lack of fluids in hot weather and during active recreation also stimulate excessive heat production in the body.

In addition to external facts, the thermoregulation centers are affected by pathological conditions of the body:

• chronic constipation;
• colds - occur with cough, nasal discharge, deterioration in general health;
• intestinal infections;
• childhood diseases - measles, mumps, rubella, scarlet fever, rotavirus;
• inflammatory processes in the nasopharynx, ears, eyes.

Reduced body temperature

Normal temperature should be at least 36 degrees. Deviations from this norm occur for the following reasons:

• transient decrease in degrees - occurs in the first hours after birth;
• imperfection of the thermoregulation system - observed in both one-month-old, two-month-old, and three-month-old infants;
• hypothermia – prolonged exposure of children to the cold leads to a slowdown in the formation of heat in the body;
• past infectious diseases - usually the temperature drops due to its artificial decrease with antipyretic drugs;
• sleep time, awakening - when the child is sleeping, his body temperature is the lowest, so you should not carry out measurement manipulations during sleep or immediately upon awakening;
• overdose of vasoconstrictor drops for a runny nose.

Viral diseases can cause a decrease in body temperature. Indicators below 36 degrees remain for up to 4 days, accompanied by drowsiness and lethargy of the baby.

Antipyretics

In one of the videos about high fever, Dr. Komarovsky talks about antipyretic drugs that are used as self-medication. These are medications that can be found in almost any home medicine cabinet.

The standard recommendation is as follows: parents should have paracetamol and ibuprofen in their first aid kit. It is not always easy to give your child medicine. Komarovsky advises parents, in case of fever in children under one year of age, to use an antipyretic agent in the form of suppositories. Therefore, one of the two above-mentioned medications should be purchased in the form of tablets, the second - in the form of suppositories. In general, all medications are available in three forms:

• hard
• liquid;
• candles.

The rate of absorption of drugs in liquid form: syrups, solutions, is much higher than in tablet form. Therefore, in emergency situations it is more convenient to use them.

Preparations based on ibuprofen and paracetamol have almost the same properties:

• reduce the temperature by 1-2 C;
• begin to act in less than an hour;
• the maximum effect is achieved in 3-4 hours
• the effect lasts about 6 hours (ibuprofen takes a couple of hours longer).

Besides the dosage, the main difference is that ibuprofen can be used in children from 6 months of age, and paracetamol - from 3 months of age.

But tablets that reduce fever can be safely used only if the child has signs of a cold: runny nose, cough. If you don’t know the exact cause, there are no other symptoms, Komarovsky reminds, the child has a fever and nothing else, you should call a doctor.

Of course, there are exceptions to the rules. For example, even if there are no other symptoms, but the child has a temperature of 39 C, says Komarovsky, antipyretic drugs should be used to calmly wait for the doctor.

If the child does not respond to antipyretics and the temperature rises, seek emergency medical attention. While you are waiting for the doctor, you need to provide your child with plenty of fluids and clean air. The next time you can use the medicine only after an hour (and exactly the same).

Drugs should be dosed not so much according to age, but according to the child’s body weight.

Evgeniy Olegovich does not consider it appropriate to use ibuprofen and paracetamol at the same time, especially for self-medication.

Because the likelihood of side effects increases rapidly. The risk of developing allergic reactions, overdose, etc. increases.

If the medicine does not help, you need to think not about giving the next medicine, but about what the temperature is in the room, where the child is, what he is wearing, etc.

Komarovsky about temperature in infants

Dr. Komarovsky strongly recommends not to reduce the fever if the readings on the thermometer are below 38.5. When a virus enters the body, the immune system actively produces interferon, which is needed to suppress pathogens. Its highest concentration in the blood is achieved on the 2nd day of disease development. If you actively lower the temperature at this time, the child’s defenses decrease and the disease progresses.

The pediatrician advises starting treatment without medications:

• create an optimal temperature regime - the room is no more than 20 degrees, while the child is warmly dressed;
• provide plenty of drink (water, tea, compote), which should be moderately warm;
• put the child to bed, thereby ensuring peace of mind.

When fever should be eliminated:

• child intolerance to high temperature;
• the readings on the thermometer are more than 39;
• the presence of diseases of the nervous system in children, for which vasospasm due to heat in the body is dangerous.

Before the ambulance arrives, the child is given Paracetamol (Panadol, Eferalgan). It is strictly not recommended to rub the skin with alcohol, vodka or vinegar to prevent intoxication and increase the temperature of internal organs.

Increased body temperature during teething

In one of his videos, Komarovsky compared two facts - temperature and teeth. Evgeniy Olegovich believes that during teething, fever does not occur as often as pediatricians claim. If the child’s fever is really caused by this factor, then the hyperthermia is small - up to 38 C.

The doctor reminds us how difficult it is not to confuse the temperature during teething with the fever that occurs due to an acute respiratory infection. After all, ARVI in the cold season is the most common cause of high body temperature (in the summer - overheating of the body). To be absolutely sure that the fever is caused by the appearance of a tooth, you should consult a doctor. It is quite difficult to independently detect minor inflammation of the gums during this process.

Thus, we can conclude that the main task of parents during hyperthermia in children is to create optimal conditions so that the child’s body is able to independently cope with the unpleasant symptom.

What temperature should be normal?

A newborn finds himself in an environment whose temperature differs sharply from his usual temperature. A full-term healthy baby at birth has a body temperature of 37.6-38.2° due to fluid loss and birth stress, but this quickly passes. In the coming hours it drops by 1.5-2 notches. In addition, the temperature in newborns in the first month ranges from 36.3 to 37°.

The mother should not worry about such fluctuations; on the contrary, maintaining the good condition of the child is carried out taking into account precisely this feature.

For your information. Screaming, crying, anxiety, excessive activity in the evening are the reasons that increase body temperature to 38 degrees and above. If the temperature does not drop in a calm state, it is necessary to look for other causes and eliminate them.

What is the best time to measure the temperature of children under one year old?

To get the correct temperature readings, you should choose the right time for this event. Measurement cannot be carried out if:

• the child just woke up;
• immediately after feeding;
• after coming from a walk and after water treatments.

When measured after the above points, the thermometer may give inflated readings, which, of course, will greatly alarm concerned parents. You should wait approximately 30-40 minutes after such procedures to get optimal numbers.