Lower fever in adults

The body of an adult can usually counteract increased body temperatures and fever much better than a child or infant. The reason for this is the fact that an adult has significantly more fluid reserves and therefore tends to dehydration (lack of fluid) less quickly. Therefore, lowering fever in adults should always be carefully considered.

As a rule, i.e. at temperatures below 39.5 degrees Celsius, no fever reduction is necessary. In addition, an adult already has a mature immune system, which is effectively stimulated by the increase in body core temperature. In this way, the organism of the affected person can adequately counteract the bacterial or viral pathogens.

An adult in whom even a slight fever is lowered usually needs considerably longer until complete healing sets in. If the fever is high, it can be lowered with antipyretic drugs such as ibuprofen and paracetamol, household remedies or herbal substances. In general, it must be assumed that fever should not be lowered in every case.

Particularly slightly pronounced fever, with temperatures of less than 38.5 degrees Celsius, should not normally be lowered by medicines or household remedies. From a medical point of view, such a slight increase in temperature is not called fever, but elevated temperature. But also a body core temperature of more than 38.5 degrees Celsius does not necessarily have to be lowered.

The reason for this is the fact that fever plays a decisive role in activating the body’s own immune system. Above all, the defence against viral pathogens, such as flu-like infections, can be effectively stimulated by increasing the body core temperature. In this context, children with a tendency to febrile convulsions are an exception.

In order to avoid febrile convulsions, even low fevers should be consistently reduced. Various procedures can be used to reduce the fever, which we will present in the following sections. As soon as an effective fever reduction with home remedies or substances from the field of homeopathy can no longer be guaranteed and/or the body temperature rises to a value of more than 40 degrees Celsius, it is imperative to resort to a potent medication.

In addition, a specialist should be consulted promptly and the direct cause of the fever should be determined. Patients in whom a bacterial infection has been proven to be the cause of the fever must usually be treated with an antibacterial drug (antibiotic). The choice of the most suitable antibiotic depends on the respective bacterial pathogen.

Due to special characteristics of the bacteria, not every antibiotic can have an effect. Patients affected should take care when taking the antibiotic to ensure that the medication is taken properly even after the symptoms have subsided completely. Otherwise, under certain circumstances, a new outbreak of the disease causing the fever may occur.

In addition, the early discontinuation of the antibacterial medication can lead to the development of resistance. This means that the bacterial pathogens may no longer react to the antibiotics in question when they are used again. If no bacterial infection can be detected in the affected patient, a purely symptomatic therapy must be initiated.This is usually done by taking antipyretic drugs to reduce fever.

Antipyretic drugs mediate their effect by inhibiting the synthesis of a specific messenger substance (prostaglandin- E2). As a result, the smallest vessels within the skin can be dilated by the organism. The vasodilatation then ensures that an increased amount of heat is released and sweat is excreted.

If no bacterial infection can be detected in the affected patient, a purely symptomatic therapy must be initiated. This is usually done by taking antipyretic drugs to reduce fever. Antipyretic drugs mediate their effect by inhibiting the synthesis of a specific messenger substance (prostaglandin- E2).

As a result, the smallest vessels within the skin can be dilated by the organism. The vasodilatation then ensures that an increased amount of heat is released and sweat is excreted. In the affected patient, a cooling process begins after taking one of the antipyretic drugs.

The best-known drugs include paracetamol, aspirin and ibuprofen. These drugs also have analgesic properties. If, in addition to the fever, the affected patients suffer from accompanying symptoms such as headache, muscle pain or aching limbs, the use of these drugs can relieve several complaints at once.

The choice of the most suitable medication depends both on the level of the fever and on the constitution of the patient. In particular, the analgesic and antipyretic drug ibuprofen may not be taken by some patients, for example in the presence of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Even when using antipyretic drugs, however, it should always be borne in mind that the increase in body temperature during an infection has an immune system-stimulating effect.

For this reason, a too drastic reduction of the fever can have a negative effect on the healing process and delay it considerably. It is also important to ensure a sufficient supply of fluids, because due to the high temperature and sweating, the patient loses a lot of fluids and minerals. Assuming that a healthy person should be given 1-3 liters of fluid in 24 hours, the fluid intake should be increased by 0.5-1 liter for each increased degree Celsius of body temperature.

If it is not the seasonally caused harmless infection, but another fever-causing reason, such as immunocompromise (chemotherapy) or surgery, an antibiotic therapy (antibiotics) of the infection should be administered in addition to the removal of the fever-causing source (removing catheters, etc.) and fever reduction. This should also be done if the symptoms of a suspected flu-like infection do not recede after 1-2 weeks.

It is also important not to initiate any therapeutic measures that would obscure the diagnosis, i.e. no antibiotic therapy should be initiated before a blood culture test has been performed to identify the pathogen. If the pathogen spectrum is unclear, broad-spectrum antibiotics should be given. In the case of fever of unclear genesis, the following antibiotics should be administered: piperacillin/tazobactam+aminoglycoside or 3rd generation+ cephalosporin aminoglycoside.

If there is no improvement 72 hours after antibiotic administration, the antibiotic treatment should be changed to an antibacterial and antifungal therapy (anti-fungal drugs). Carbapenems (imipenem, meropenem)+glycopeptide (teicoplanin,vancomycin)+amphotericin B would be suitable for this. In general it can be said that the faster a therapy is started, the higher the chances of success.

Patients without accompanying symptoms and without reduction of neutrophilic granulocytes should wait 2-3 days without therapy to objectify the fever and to find the basic cause. Various procedures can be used to lower the fever. Besides the potent antipyretic drugs such as paracetamol, aspirin or ibuprofen, some home remedies can help to effectively relieve the fever.

People who suffer from high fever have little appetite in most cases and should not be forced to eat under any circumstances. However, there are a variety of foods that can reduce fever if taken regularly.For this reason, as soon as the affected patient feels hungry, protein-rich foods should be eaten. The most popular home remedies for fever include vegetable and chicken broth, as well as cooked chicken, steamed vegetables and salad.

In addition, fresh citrus fruits, for example oranges, mandarins or grapefruits, are said to help effectively reduce fever without drug therapy, as a sufficient supply of vitamin C is considered to be beneficial for recovery. Drinking teas, especially elderberry blossoms, lime blossoms, meadow goat’s beard blossoms and thyme herb is also said to contribute to a faster recovery. Furthermore, cold calf compresses are among the most popular home remedies against fever.

Also with this household remedy it should be questioned however still before the application critically whether a lowering of the fever at the current time is meaningful at all. An alternative to cold calf compresses are the so-called “wet stockings”. For this purpose, ordinary cotton socks can be placed in cold water, wrung out and then put on.

A pair of dry woollen socks should also be pulled over the wet socks. In this way the cooling effect of the wet socks can be increased. The effectiveness of this household remedy can be maximized by adding vinegar water.

For this purpose, linen socks should be dipped into cold water, into which 2-3 tablespoons of vinegar have been stirred beforehand, and after putting on these socks, dry woollen socks should also be put on. This procedure should be repeated at least twice a day. Info’s about another home remedy can be found here: Chest wraps An alternative to cold calf wraps are the so-called “wet socks”.

For this purpose, ordinary cotton socks can be placed in cold water, wrung out and then put on. A pair of dry woollen socks should also be pulled over the wet socks. In this way the cooling effect of the wet socks can be increased.

The effectiveness of this household remedy can be maximized by adding vinegar water. For this purpose, linen socks should be dipped into cold water, into which 2-3 tablespoons of vinegar have been stirred beforehand, and after putting on these socks, dry woollen socks should also be put on. This procedure should be repeated at least twice a day.

Info’s about another home remedy can be found here: Chest wrap-straight from small children these household remedies are unfortunately not always tolerated without problems. However, it is considered counterproductive to put a feverish child under stress by putting on calf compresses, wet socks or using other household remedies. Under certain circumstances this can have a negative influence on the course of the illness.

For this reason, the use of other household remedies may become necessary for infants and children. For example, regular cold washings of a sick toddler can help to lower the fever and increase the well-being of the affected child. With this household remedy, the infant’s entire body should be rubbed with a lukewarm washcloth.

The most suitable temperature depends on the degree of well-being of the affected child and should be approximately one to ten degrees below the body temperature of the affected child. However, in order to avoid any impairment of the cardiovascular system, the washing process must always follow a fixed pattern. This means that the child’s hands and arms must first be cooled (so-called peripheral washing).

This household remedy can then be applied to the neck, belly, flanks and back of the infant (so-called central washing). As soon as the upper half of the body has cooled down, the legs and feet can also be washed. The effectiveness of this household remedy can be further increased by enriching the water used with a small amount of peppermint oil.

It should be noted, however, that this household remedy is restricted to persons who have reached the age of at least six years. Accordingly, babies and small children must not be washed with water and peppermint oil. Furthermore, there are some recommendations especially for fever with Schüssler salts.

For example, patients with fever up to 39 degrees Celsius should take one tablet of Ferrum phosphoricum (Schüssler salt No. 3) every 10 minutes. Above 39 degrees Celsius potassium phosphoricum (Schüssler Salt No.

5) should also be taken every 10 minutes.In case of fever derailments that exceed 41-42 degrees Celsius, a doctor should be consulted immediately. In some cases, especially when the fever is very high, neither calf compresses nor ablutions can cause the body temperature to drop significantly. In addition, in some cases it is not possible to achieve sufficient fever reduction by taking antipyretic drugs.

Even the combination of paracetamol and ibuprofen may not always lead to the hoped-for goal. In these cases, a so-called “descending full bath” can help to gradually lower the fever somewhat. When using this household remedy, the patient’s bed must be warmed up and a bathtub filled with warm water before use.

The temperature of the bath water should be only one degree lower than the current body temperature of the patient. Once the patient has been lying in the lukewarm bath water for a few minutes, the bath water can be gradually filled with cold water. Within a period of about ten to fifteen minutes, the bath water should be lowered to a temperature of 25 degrees Celsius. In addition, the body of the affected patient can be rubbed with a washcloth or a light massage brush during the cooling process. In this way, the feeling of coldness can be somewhat alleviated and the well-being of the affected person can be increased.