biology of infectious disease
infections
Fever in Adults
The symptoms people have are due mainly to the condition causing the fever rather than the fever itself. Although many people worry that fever can cause harm, the typical temporary elevations in body temperature ranging from 100.4° to 104° F (38° to 40° C) caused by most short-lived (acute) infections are well-tolerated by healthy adults. However, a moderate fever may be slightly dangerous for adults with a heart or lung disorder because fever causes the heart rate and breathing rate to increase. Fever can also worsen mental status in people with dementia. Extreme temperature elevation (typically more than 105.8° F, or 41° C) may be damaging. A body temperature this high can cause malfunction and ultimately failure of most organs. Such extreme elevation sometimes results from very severe infection (such as Sepsis and Septic Shock , Fever in healthy children can cause Febrile Seizures . 