Fever Flashcards
Pneumonia
. Infection that inflames the air sacs in one or both lungs
. Air sacs may fill with fluid or pus causing cough with phlegm or pus
Pneumonia signs and symptoms
Fever or hypothermia, tachypnea, cough, dyspnea, bronchial sounds or crackles on auscultation
Tachypnea
Rapid breathing
Dyspnea
Difficult or labored breathing
Pneumonia etiology
Viral, bacterial, fungal
Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL)
Cancer of the blood and bone marrow, common in kids
Signs and symptoms of ALL
Fever, bleeding from gums, easy bruising, loss of appetite, night sweats, weight loss
Pyelonephritis
. Infection of renal pelvis and kidney
. Results from ascent of bacterial pathogen up ureters from bladder to kidneys
Signs and symptoms of pyelonephritis
Fever, flank pain, painful urination (dysuria), urinary frequency
Pyelonephritis nephrology
Escherichia Coli, Proteus, Klebsiella, Enterobacter
Bacteremia
Presence of bacteria in blood
Signs and symptoms of bacteremia
Fever and chills, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, skin rash
Bacteremia etiology
Gram-negative and gram-positive organisms both aerobic and anaerobic
Influenza
Viral infection that attacks resp. System
Influenza signs and symptoms
. Fever, chills, malaise, cough, Coryza, and myalgias
. Elderly present with confusion w/o fever
Influenza etiology
influenza A, B, or C
Coryza
Upper respiratory tract inflammation
Myalgias
General discomfort
Influenza route of transmission
Respiratory droplet nuclei
ROS list
. General . Skin . HEET . Neck . Breasts . Resp. . Cardio . GI . Peripheral vascular . Urinary . Genital . Musculoskeletal . Psychiatric . Neurological . Hematologists . Endocrine
What does SOS stand for?
Structure (anatomy), Organs (systems), and Science (pathophysiology)
Structure relating to illness discovery
Think about anatomy superficial to deep and what potential issues could arise
Organs (systems) in relation to illness discovery
Think about how the different body systems work together and what would happen if a particular body system malfunctioned
Science (pathophysiology) in regards to illness discovery
Think about how things normally function and what a possible disease could be based on previous scientific knowledge
Fever
Abnormal elevation of core body temp.
Body temp is normally ____
37 degrees C (98.6 degrees F)
Prexia is a temp of ___
38 C or higher (100.4 F)
Hyperprexia is is a temp of ____
41.6 C or higher (106 F)
Hypothermia is a temp of ____
35 C or lower (95 F)
Physiology of a fever
. Fever reflects change in hypothalamic setpoint
. Bacterial infection signals immune rxn and necrosis
. TNF and IL-1 are released causing NE and arachidonic acid to be released from hypothalamus signal
. PGE2 is released increases temp causing fever, vasoconstriction, and muscle shivering
Fever’s role in disease
Inc. blood vessel size -inc. blood vol. - inc. metabolism - inc. immune rxns, chemotactic, phagocytic, and bactericidal activity of polymorphonuclear leukocytes - slows down proliferation of microorganisms
Oral temp compared with core body temp
. Usually lower than core body and rectal by 0.5-0.7 C (0.7-0.9 F)
. higher than auxiliary temp by 1 degree
Etiology of fever
Infection, cancer, withdrawal, rheumatologic disease, endocrine, allergy, fever of unknown origin (FUO), drug reaction, trauma
Complications of fever
. Dehydration/electrolyte and glucose abnormality
. Mental status change/delirium
. Neurotoxic effect/seizure
Low grade fever temp.
. 100.5-102.1 F
. 38.1-39 C
Moderate fever temp
. 102.2-104.0 F
. 39.1-40 C
High fever temp
. 104.1-106.0 F
. 40.1-41.1 C
How long is an acute fever?
Less than 7 days
How long is sub-acute fever
Up t o 14 days
How long is chronic/persistent fever?
14+ days
Continuous fevers
. No fluctuations or fever breaks throughout length of time
. Lack true chills/rigor
Infectious etiologies of continuous fever
Typhoid, TB, bacterial endocarditis, fungal disease and bacterial pneumonia
Non-infectious etiologies in continuous fever
Neoplasms, CT, drugs
Intermittent fevers
. Interval when temp is elevated for several ours followed by an interval when temp drops back to normal
Etiologies of intermittent fevers
. Rat bite fever, malaria, cholangitis, infections w/ Borrelia recurrent is, Hodgkin’s and other neoplasms
What is double quotidian fever and what is it indicative of?
. 2 spikes of fever throughout day
. Indicative of gonococcal endocarditis
What is 48 hour interval fever symptom of?
Plasmodia Vivax, P. Ovale
What disease has symptom of 72 hour interval fever?
P. Malariae
Drug fever
. Exceeds 40.5 C
. From administration related mechanisms, pharmacological action of drug, alteration of thermoregulation, or specific drug sensitivity
. Rapid resolution upon discontinuation of meds
What are administration related mechanisms for drug fever?
. Fluid contamination
. Phlebitis (irritation of vessel from fluid)
What are some pharmacological action of drugs that cause drug fever?
Jarisch-Herxheimer rxn, tumor cell necrosis w/ chemotherapy
What causes alteration of thermoregulation leading to drug fever?
Hyperthermia
Cytokines-induced fever seldom exceeds ____
41.1 C
Chills
. Subjective shivering/shaking assoc. w/ rapid body changes in body temp.
. Causes involuntary muscle contractions that occur in response to sudden lowering of body temp. Below altered setpoint from fever
Night sweats
Subjective reports of nocturnal sweating that results from exaggeration of normal circadian temp. Rhythm
What accompanies rise in temp?
Feeling cold, goosebumps, and shivering
What accompanies fall in temp?
Hot and sweating
Babies have ____ temp than adults
Warmer
Why do babies have higher temp than adults?
. Larger body surface area compared to weight
. More metabolically active generating more heat
. Don’t regulate temp well (sweat less)
With increasing age, body temp ____
Decreases
Are fever responses greater in kids or adults?
Kids
What populations are more likely to be sick but have normal temps or hypothermia?
. Older patients, neonates, certain medications, immunocompromised
What can occur w/ high temps in first trimester of pregnancy?
Birth defects (anacephaly)
Fever effect on insulin and metabolism
. Increases insulin requirements, alters metabolism and disposition of drugs
What is a fever lasting longer than 3 weeks indicative of?
FUO, bacterial infection
What is fever plus shortness of breath indicative of?
Pneumonia, esp if patient is less than 2 or older than 65
What is fever plus swollen neck/fatigue indicative of?
EBV
What is fever plus excessive fatigue indicative of?
. Usually low grade fever
. Lymphoma, leukemia, renal or liver
What is fever plus right lower abdomen pain indicative of?
Appendicitis
What is fever plus low back pain/hematuria indicative of?
UTI
Pyelonephritis
. Nephrolithiasis
What is fever plus sore throat indicative of?
. Strep, pericarditis/endocarditis
What is fever plus leg pain/swelling indicative of?
Blood clot (DVT)
What is fever plus GI symptoms indicative of?
IBS, crohns, UC, celiac, gastroenteritis
What is fever plus joint pain indicative of?
RA
What are red flags with fever that prompt hospitalization
. Hypoxia . Shock . Pleural effusion . Multilobar infiltrates in chest (sever pneumonia) . Failure of prior outpatient therapy . Confusion . Unable to tolerate oral intake . Unreliable social situation . Sickle cell, immunocompromised, COPD or CHF
Pleural effusion
Fluid in lining
CHF
Congestive heart failure
Hypothermia causes
. Cold exposure . Paralysis/reduced movement . Vasoconstriction issue from sepsis/excess alcohol . Starvation . hypothyroidism . Hypoglycemia . Older adults
What causes central fever?
. Directly from brain injury . Subarachnoid or intraventricular hemorrhage . Brain tumor . Absence of infiltrate in chest . Neg. cultures
Hyperthermia causes
. NOT cytokines
. Body metabolic heat production/environmental heat load exceeds heat loss capacity or impaired heat loss
hyperthermia example diseases
Heat stroke, thyroid storm (hyperthermia)))
Result of high levels of hyperthermia?
Produces irreversible protein denaturation and resultant brain damage, death
Neuroleptic malignant syndrome
. Rare, potentially lethal idiosyncratic rxn to neuroleptic meds
. Lead pipe riding its in reflexes
Serotonin syndrome
. Occurs w/in hours of ingesting agents that inc. serotonin in CNS
. Clonus and hyperflexia in reflexes
Neuroleptic malignant syndrome is similar to what disease?
Serotonin syndrome
Clonus
Bringing tendon back quickly and it shakes
FUO must last over ____
. 3 weeks
Fever of unknown origin (FUO)
. Fever over 38.3 C on several occasions
. Diagnosis has not been made after 3 outpatient visits or 3 days of hospitalization
Hospital associated FUO
. Hospitalized pt w/ fever greater than 38.3 C on several occasions due to process not present or incubating at time of admission
Neutropenic FUO
Less than 500 neutrophils/microliter
Language Barrier Aspects in USA
. 60 million Americans speak a language other than English at home
. Over 2% have limited English proficiency
. Spanish is primary non-English language
. Less likely to have regular primary/preventative care and more likely to experience dissatisfaction and adverse outcomes from clinical errors
INTERPRET
Guidelines for using interpreter I: introductions N: note goals T: transparency E: ethics R: respect beliefs P: patient focus R: retain control E: explain T: thanks