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when to
call your child's doctor
If your child has the
signs and symptoms of infection that are listed below, you should
bring your child immediately to the doctor.
Although some typical
symptoms of illness differ depending on a child's age, some are the same
for all children.
Whenever your child has a
symptom that concerns you, you should not hesitate to call your child's
doctor, even if the symptom does not appear on this list.
Signs and Symptoms - Birth
to 3 Months
- any change in the baby's
color, especially paleness or bluish color around the mouth and in the
face
- fever (rectal
temperature of 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit) in any infant younger than 3
months should prompt a call to the doctor
- baby suddenly becomes
"floppy" with loss of muscle tone, or becomes stiff
- one or both eyes are
pink, bloodshot, have a sticky white discharge, or eyelashes that
stick together
- diarrhea in newborns -
more than six to eight watery stools per day (breast-fed newborns
often have looser stools than formula-fed babies; check with your
child's doctor for guidance)
- redness or tenderness
around the navel area
- white patches in the
mouth
- nose blocked by mucus so
baby can't breathe while feeding
- forceful vomiting
- vomiting that lasts for 6
hours or more
- vomiting with fever
and/or diarrhea
- baby stops feeding
normally
- crying for an abnormally
long time
- any blood in the stools
Signs and Symptoms - 3
Months to 1 Year
- fever (rectal
temperature of 101 degrees Fahrenheit in infants ages 3 to 6
months, and 104 degrees F in a child 6 months or older)
- baby refuses to eat and
misses several feedings
- baby is unusually cranky
and irritable or unusually sleepy
- any blood in the stools
Signs and Symptoms -
Infant to Adolescent (All Ages)
- high fever (The level of
fever that is considered significant depends on the age of the child,
the illness, and whether the child has other symptoms with the fever.
See above.)
- chills that make the
child shake all over
- loss of consciousness
for any reason
- extreme sleepiness or
unexplained lethargy
- unusual excitement or
hysterical crying
- sudden weakness or
paralysis of any part of the body
- seizures (convulsions)
or uncontrollable shaking of an arm or leg
- severe headache
- pain, heaviness, or
stuffiness around the nose, eyes, or forehead
- nasal fluid that is
discolored, bad-smelling, or bloody
- sudden hearing loss
- earache
- fluid discharge from the
ear
- sudden decrease in
vision
- eyes that are red,
swollen, and watery, with or without blurred vision
- eyes that are extremely
sensitive to light, especially if your child also has a fever,
headache, or stiff neck
- a yellow color in the
whites of the eyes or in the skin, especially with pain in the abdomen
and/or dark or tea-colored urine
- stiffness or pain in the
neck, especially with fever or headache
- severe sore throat,
especially with trouble swallowing or speaking
- uncontrolled drooling
because of painful swallowing
- difficulty breathing,
especially with pale or bluish color of the lips or nails
- unusually rapid
breathing
- severe or persistent cough,
especially if it brings up bloody or discolored mucus
- vomiting for 12 hours or
more
- vomiting of blood
- intense or unusual
abdominal pain
- swollen or abnormally
large abdomen
- diarrhea that is
streaked with blood or mucus
- pain in the middle of
the back, especially with fever or with discomfort while urinating
- painful or unusually
frequent urination
- urine that is
discolored, bloody, cloudy, or has an unusual smell
- discharge from the penis
- vaginal discharge that
is thick and white, brown or discolored, or smells bad
- pain, redness, or
swelling of a joint that can't be explained by exercise or injury
- a cut or scrape that
oozes pus or becomes hot, red, tender, or swollen
- a sudden rash, or sudden
crop of blotches or blisters, especially over a large area of the body
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