How can I tell if my fever is contagious? | Fever

How can I tell if my fever is contagious?

Fever in itself is not contagious. If the fever is caused by a pathogen, it can be transmitted and cause symptoms and fever in other people. If a sore throat, headache, cold, cough, vomiting or diarrhoea accompanies the fever, it can be assumed that the disease is contagious.

Depending on the pathogen, however, the period during which infection is possible also differs. If it is not clear whether the fever is caused by an infection, hygiene measures should be followed to prevent it from spreading. For example, hands should be washed frequently. Changing bed linen and washing clothes worn during the infection should also be done at the latest after the infection has healed. In the case of infectious diarrheal diseases, adequate hand hygiene must always be ensured.

When should I go to the doctor with fever?

The visit to the doctor should not only be made dependent on fever, but also on the accompanying circumstances. If the symptoms are severe, it is important that the visit to the doctor takes place, regardless of whether the fever is high or not. However, if the fever rises above 39.5°C and cannot be reduced by medication, a doctor should be consulted.

Clouding of consciousness due to an infection is also an urgent reason to seek medical help. Babies and infants should be monitored closely to see how the fever develops. Especially in babies, signs such as weakness in drinking and clouding of consciousness are a sign that a visit to the doctor is unavoidable.

If the fever does not occur in connection with an infection, persists for a long period of time and is without symptoms, a doctor should also be consulted, as the underlying cause can be a serious illness. An unintentional, severe weight loss and night sweats in combination with fever should also make one think of a malignant disease and require urgent clarification. Fever is not an illness, but rather a symptom that can have a variety of causes.

Fever is also one of the most common reasons for consulting a doctor, or why a doctor needs to make a home visit. The mechanism of fever development is very complex. It is assumed that the brain contains, among other things, heat-sensitive nerves which, together with the cold-sensitive cells, set the body’s target temperature.

If there is a release of so-called pyrogens, an imbalance between the two nerve cell activities occurs, which results in an increase in temperature. Pyrogens include all foreign bodies that have entered the body from outside and thus also pathogens, but also substances produced by the body in the event of inflammation. In malignant tumor diseases, the tumor necrosis factor is released, which results in an increase in temperature and thus in heavy sweating (the main symptom of malignant diseases is night sweat).

The most common external pathogens are bacteria and viruses. Fever can also occur after operations, which is usually caused by pathogens caught in hospital. The most common sources of infection in hospitalized patients are urinary tract infections through catheters and cannulas that have been in the veins too long.

However, hospital-acquired pneumonia can also cause fever. It is important for hospitalized patients to take fever-reducing measures as quickly as possible.Patients who suspect a seasonal infection and come to the family doctor’s practice should only be treated if they are immunocompromised patients (tumour patients, elderly patients), if the feverish infection has persisted for more than 7-10 days, if a particular rythmic of the fever is visible (e.g. fever attacks etc.) and if the accompanying symptoms of the fever are very strong.

In most cases, fever is generally accompanied by weakness, fatigue, headaches and nausea or vomiting. If the fever rises in regions around 40-42 degrees Celsius, patients may begin to fantasize. In this case the fever must also be lowered immediately.

This is done on the one hand with cold calf compresses, but also with antipyretic medication (e.g. paracetamol, ASS 100, ibuprofen). If the fever persists for an unnatural length of time, in patients with no obvious infections or in hospitalized patients, the exact cause of the fever should always be clarified. For this purpose, a blood culture should be performed 2-3 times a day on two consecutive days to determine the pathogen.

Furthermore, venous catheters or urinary bladder catheters should be changed. The blood count, which should also be examined, should include the leukocytes and the inflammation protein CRP. Both values are usually elevated in febrile infections.

Immunocompromised or hospitalized patients should be given antibiotics as soon as possible after the blood culture is taken. If the pathogen is not detected, which is the case in about 60% of fevers, a broad-spectrum antibiotic should be administered. If the fever still does not go away, an ultrasound examination of the abdominal organs or an X-ray examination of the heart and chest may be necessary.

If the fever and weakness are not clear, an inflammation of the inner wall of the heart (endocardial inflammation) must always be considered. Some hereditary diseases must also be examined and excluded after the most common causes have been ruled out. Fever can be the expression of a harmless infection (in most cases) or the first sign of serious illness.