Mia has been sporting a mild fever (37.5°C) for days like others would flaunt a new hair cut. Every day. Fancy and all. Proud as a peacock.
She's done it before that little show off, and her pediatrician had told us not to worry and just keep an eye on any temperature rise. And so far, Mia had been playing by the rules. Until last night.
At some point during the evening, I went to check on our little Duracell Bunny who was asleep but moaning. I feared she would wake up so I started singing to her a little bit which worked for a while before she was eventually up.
Since she was still very sleepy, I left her in her cot, hoping she would fall back asleep. We remained like that, singing and moaning for about 45 minutes.
Mia does that sometimes when she sleeps early and we expected she would wake up last night, especially when she refused to drink her last bottle before going to bed.
Mia does that sometimes when she sleeps early and we expected she would wake up last night, especially when she refused to drink her last bottle before going to bed.
Our little A Cappella session seemed like it would extend indefinitely until for whatever reason I (FINALLY!!) touched Mia's forehead. I almost burnt my fingers! She was boiling hot!
It took a few seconds for me to control my urges to panic and think of the next step: get the thermometer. The verdict was an alarming 39.5°C. Alarming mostly because I was home alone and I was not about to run to the ER by myself at midnight, with Mia in my arms.
So I called my parents who were at Costa Coffee in Hamra, right down the street from our home. They were by our side in three minutes! That's one advantage of residing in that area. Everything is a few blocks away, on foot. Including hospitals.
My mom had reminded me to undress Mia who is wearing pajamas for a few days now, since the weather changed. That was one of the reasons I did not immediately notice her fever although I had touched her arms and legs several times while waiting for her to fall back asleep. But all her body was covered and I could not feel anything!
Mia was fighting any cold patch I would put on her forehead, arms or thighs but with another pair of hands around, we managed to put her in a lukewarm bath. We proceeded with a Tylenol suppository (100mg) which did not seem to have any effect. Mia's temperature was still high so we called her pediatrician who turned out to be out of town and SOS Médecins who make house calls. They usually are amazing but for whatever reason, they did not pick up yesterday. So we headed to the ER.
"Our" hospital is Clemenceau Medical Center (CMC) affiliated with Johns Hopkins Medicine International. We first discovered them when I had my second miscarriage (with laparoscopy) and they managed to almost make this horrible memory a pleasant experience! So it is without hesitation that we decided to give birth there and followed up with their pediatrics staff as well.
I am very pleased with this choice and this morning only confirmed that conviction. The doctor who saw Mia last night called us a few hours ago to check on new developments and give further instructions and advice! Now, what hospital provides that sort of patient care and follow up? We are not talking about Mia's pediatrician but a physician who met us for the first time (and for all she knows the last) yesterday.
Last night's ER in a nutshell:
Instructions and advice:
Good to know:
Useful References and Medications to always have at home:
So I called my parents who were at Costa Coffee in Hamra, right down the street from our home. They were by our side in three minutes! That's one advantage of residing in that area. Everything is a few blocks away, on foot. Including hospitals.
My mom had reminded me to undress Mia who is wearing pajamas for a few days now, since the weather changed. That was one of the reasons I did not immediately notice her fever although I had touched her arms and legs several times while waiting for her to fall back asleep. But all her body was covered and I could not feel anything!
Mia was fighting any cold patch I would put on her forehead, arms or thighs but with another pair of hands around, we managed to put her in a lukewarm bath. We proceeded with a Tylenol suppository (100mg) which did not seem to have any effect. Mia's temperature was still high so we called her pediatrician who turned out to be out of town and SOS Médecins who make house calls. They usually are amazing but for whatever reason, they did not pick up yesterday. So we headed to the ER.
"Our" hospital is Clemenceau Medical Center (CMC) affiliated with Johns Hopkins Medicine International. We first discovered them when I had my second miscarriage (with laparoscopy) and they managed to almost make this horrible memory a pleasant experience! So it is without hesitation that we decided to give birth there and followed up with their pediatrics staff as well.
I am very pleased with this choice and this morning only confirmed that conviction. The doctor who saw Mia last night called us a few hours ago to check on new developments and give further instructions and advice! Now, what hospital provides that sort of patient care and follow up? We are not talking about Mia's pediatrician but a physician who met us for the first time (and for all she knows the last) yesterday.
Last night's ER in a nutshell:
- Weight measure (10.200 kg)
- Temperature measure
- Chest, ears and throat check
- 1 dose of Profenal Syrup
Instructions and advice:
- Watch and monitor temperature
- If temperature is high, alternate one dose of Paracetamol and another of Profenal with at least 1 hour in between doses
- Paracetamol can be given every 4 hours
- Profenal can be given every 6 hours
- If you have given Paracetamol and an hour later Profenal (or vice-versa) and the temperature is not dropping as it should, the only remaining recourse are non-medical actions such as cold patches on the forehead, arms and thighs or baths of lukewarm water
- Only if temperature reaches very high degrees (above 39°C), give Voltaren which is not recommended for babies and children as it is strong on the liver
Good to know:
- Panadol and Tylenol are of the Paracetamol family
- Profenal and Advil are nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID)
- If the temperature is high, suppositories are recommended because oral intakes may cause vomiting
Useful References and Medications to always have at home:
- Paracetamol for babies (for instance Panadol or Tylenol)
- Profenal or Advil for babies
- A rectal thermometer which gives the most accurate temperature. I used OMRON Digital Thermometer:
- An ear thermometer for checking while the child is sleeping or at any time you do not want or cannot remove the diaper. Our pediatrician recommends adding 0.5°C to any measurement taken from the ear as it is not as accurate as rectal measuring. I use BRAUN Digital ThermoScan:
- SOS Médecins Lebanon
Yafet st , Hamra , Beirut
Tel.: +961 1 344444
Mob.: +961 3 344444 - SOS Médecins Dubai
Tel.: +971 4 4275000
Mob.: +971 55 3804196
After some Googling, I discovered SOS Médecins in Dubai too
References: here and here
PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS BLOG DOES NOT RECOMMEND THE ADMINISTRATION OF DRUGS WITHOUT FIRST CONSULTING A PHYSICIAN.
THE DRUGS AND ADVICE RECOMMENDED ABOVE APPLY TO MIA'S CASE AND MAY NOT BE SUITABLE IN OTHER CASES OR FOR OTHER PATIENTS EVEN IF DISPLAYING SIMILAR SYMPTOMS.
I DID NOT MENTION DOSAGES ON PURPOSE AS ONLY A PHYSICIAN CAN PRESCRIBE THE SUITABLE AMOUNTS OF DRUG TO BE ADMINISTERED BASED ON EACH PATIENT'S CASE.
THANK YOU FOR STAYING SAFE AND ALWAYS SEEK PROFESSIONAL ADVICE FROM A PHYSICIAN BEFORE ADMINISTERING DRUGS TO CHILDREN AND/OR ADULTS.
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