Monthly fever

Every single month since August, Bryce has come down with a fever that spikes high if we don't keep it under control with Tylenol/Motrin. The longest it's lasted is a week, and the shortest was 2 days. The really bizarre thing is that it hits at the same time each month (usually between the 11th and the 15th). Lo and behold, this morning I go in to get him and he's got a fever. The one in September landed us in the ER because he was 106.2, then back to the pedi's that afternoon because he then started to get the chills and couldn't stop shaking. My pedi said it was viral, and at that point, he thought the same bug must've either come back, or hadn't really gone away completely since he had it the month before, but this is now December and he's literally had it every month since August at the same time. I've gotten good at keeping it under control the past couple months, so he doesn't really go much over 100 or 101, but still, it is worrisome. Apparently, my cousin had the same thing happen to her around the same age, so I'm curious if any other moms out there have little ones that have had this happen. I'm calling his pedi on Monday.

 

Well, in case anyone else experiences this, I did some research, and at least I know it is an actual thing, but not fun to know that we will probably deal with this every month for possibly several years to come. From a google search on "monthly fever in toddlers":

http://www.mc.vanderbilt.edu/reporter/index.html?ID=867

"Kenneth Tyson Thomas is the lead author of the article that describes the syndrome, known as Periodic Fever, Aphthous stomatitis, Pharyngitis, and cervical Adenitis (PFAPA). It is a chronic condition usually seen in children under five, characterized by periodic episodes of high fever occurring roughly every four weeks. The fever briskly rises to 103-105 degrees Fahrenheit and lasts three to six days. The child is healthy otherwise - no runny nose or respiratory symptoms.

We're hoping this article may help physicians properly diagnose PFAPA. It's more common than people think," Tyson said. "It may take several years to diagnose if physicians are unaware of the syndrome. Frequently many tests are done on the children because their doctors don't want to miss anything. Lots of children in day care have frequent fever and respiratory infections, but this is not the same. It's a monthly bout of fever that parents and children come to expect."

 

How interesting! I've never heard of such a thing. I hope his fevers clear up soon and don't go on for years but it must be good to know that it's not a serious or life-altering condition. Thanks for sharing the information.

 

Very interesting. Thank you so much for sharing your finding, but I'm sorry you and your little boy have to go through this. I do hope it ends soon.

 

YES! Been there done that! My oldest dd had this her first 18 months of life. Once a month she'd get a high fever up to 105 with no other symptoms. Occasionally her throat would be a bit red or a little white in her throat and adenoids . Mostly though there were no other symptoms. We had tons of bloodwork. Got sent to an infectious disease doctor. Finally sent to an ENT. The ENT who I now believe is one of the most brilliant doctors in the world said lets try and take her T & A's out. Her theory was that sometimes the adenoids instead of filtering, catch things. Anway 2wks after the surgery she got a fever but it was shorter and not as high and then NADA! I've researched the PFAP and occasionally a doctor will do a T&A and I'm soo glad they did it in my case. I cannot imagine us dealing with that and missing tons of school for 10 years. Good luck to you!