Earlier this year Jessica my daughter was having low grade fevers or better worded elevated body temp of up to 100.2 and sometimes 100.4 but usually it stayed between 99 and 99.6 or 7. Doctors when evaluating what you could or should do with a temp like this is pretty much nothing unless it goes over 100.4 for a long period of time like more than 3 weeks. Now that our pediatrician has gotten to know Jessica’s patterns better she gave us an antibiotic recently after 14 days of low grade fever mostly 99.6 – 99.9 with a snotty green nose and strange croupy cough. Even though she’s been on an antibiotic for eight days she’s still got these fevers. Today it was 99.6 and yesterday it was 99.9. This is so frustrating.

I knew something was very wrong before because along with the low-grade fever Jessica had a rash that began to grow quite large on her back and a very snotty nose a lot of congestion. When we got out of the mold these symptoms disappeared quickly.

My pediatrician said fever is not fever until it is over 100.4 yet WebMD says,

“A person is typically considered feverish if oral temperature is above 100 F (37.8 C) or rectal temperature is above 99.5 F (37.5 C). Temperatures measured under the armpit are not considered as accurate and can be as much as 1 degree F lower than an oral measurement.

A temperature above normal but below 100.4 F (38 C) is sometimes considered a low-grade or mild fever. It may mean that the body is responding to an infection.” https://www.webmd.com/first-aid/fever-in-adults-treatment

There are so many diseases that cause fever. You can find a long list at http://www.rightdiagnosis.com/symptoms/low_grade_fever/common.htm.
At Health Grades.com they say that low-grade fevers can occasionally accompany serious medical conditions…if your low-grade fever is persistent or causes you concern, if you have other symptoms of infection, a weakened immune system, or have chronic medical problems, seek prompt medical care. http://www.healthgrades.com/symptoms/low-grade-fever.

There was one website that really helped me when I first researched this subject. At http://epmonthly.com/blog/low-grade-fevers/ this emergency room doctor rants on about how parents take their kids to the ER with a low-grade fever and it is a waste of time and ridiculous. He is actually quite degrading in the way he talks. If you read the comments below many people will tell you about major health conditions that they figured out from low-grade fever. The take away message from them is to not ignore a low grade fever. I think it might really go without saying if you are following your mommy intuition.

There was one last website that I can’t find the address for but says that fever could be caused by any of the following things, 
Pyrogens (fever-producing substances) that come from outside the body include the following:
• Viruses
• Bacteria
• Fungi
• Drugs
• Toxins

I guess it should not have surprised me that this list included fungus, drugs, and toxins. That was what was ailing Jessica early on.

If you have struggled with low-grade fever in your child or yourself, please share your story below. It may help someone else.