Afeveris when your body temperature is higher than normal.
Most healthcare providers consider a fever to be at 100.4 or higher.
However, this is just an average and varies among people.
Illustration by Michela Buttignol for Verywell Health
Across a person’s lifespan, healthy, normal body temperature ranges in degrees Fahrenheit from 96 to 99.9.
But method matters, and excreted urine is cooler when measured outside the body.
Oral
Oral temperatures are taken in the mouth.
The room temperature, hot or cold liquids, and probe placement can influence oral temperatures.
They can vary a couple of degrees between ears and in comparison to a rectal temperature.
These are normal and average tympanic temperatures:
Axillary
Axillarytemperatures are taken under the arm.
It is typically about 1 degree higher than oral readings.
Temporal thermometers measure infrared heat waves coming off the temporal artery located in the forehead.
However, a forehead temperature is often 0.5 F to 1 F lower than an oral temperature.
Fever During Pregnancy
Its normal to have a slightly elevated temperature duringpregnancy.
But, you should report a fever (temperature over 100.4 degrees) to your healthcare provider.
A fever could indicate an illness such as the flu orCOVID-19.
Your healthcare provider may want to order tests, prescribe medications, or monitor you carefully.
Symptoms of Fever
Symptoms of a fever can be constant or intermittent (come and go).
Hypothermia can be life-threatening if left untreated.
What Affects Body Temperature Readings?
Sex also plays a role.
People assigned female at birth tend to have higher temperatures.
This also fluctuates during their menstrual cycle,ovulation, and pregnancy.
Infants three months or younger with a rectal temperature over 100.4 should see a healthcare provider.
Viral and fungal infections can also cause a fever and may require anti-viral or anti-fungal therapy.
Fever because of infection, if not adequately treated, can sometimes turn into a life-threatening condition called sepsis.
Therefore, all fevers should be properly identified and treated to prevent worse outcomes.
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