
Intermittent fever is a type or pattern of
fever
Fever or pyrexia in humans is a symptom of an anti-infection defense mechanism that appears with Human body temperature, body temperature exceeding the normal range caused by an increase in the body's temperature Human body temperature#Fever, s ...
in which there is an interval where
temperature
Temperature is a physical quantity that quantitatively expresses the attribute of hotness or coldness. Temperature is measurement, measured with a thermometer. It reflects the average kinetic energy of the vibrating and colliding atoms making ...
is elevated for several hours followed by an interval when temperature drops back to normal. This type of fever usually occurs during the course of an
infectious disease
An infection is the invasion of tissue (biology), tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host (biology), host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmis ...
.
Diagnosis
Diagnosis (: diagnoses) is the identification of the nature and cause of a certain phenomenon. Diagnosis is used in a lot of different academic discipline, disciplines, with variations in the use of logic, analytics, and experience, to determine " ...
of intermittent fever is frequently based on the clinical history but some biological tests like
complete blood count
A complete blood count (CBC), also known as a full blood count (FBC) or full haemogram (FHG), is a set of medical laboratory tests that provide cytometry, information about the cells in a person's blood. The CBC indicates the counts of white blo ...
and
blood culture
A blood culture is a medical laboratory test used to detect bacteria or fungi in a person's blood. Under normal conditions, the blood does not contain microorganisms: their presence can indicate a bloodstream infection such as bacteremia or ...
are also used. In addition radiological investigations like chest
X-ray
An X-ray (also known in many languages as Röntgen radiation) is a form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than those of ultraviolet rays and longer than those of gamma rays. Roughly, X-rays have a wavelength ran ...
, abdominal
ultrasonography
Medical ultrasound includes diagnostic techniques (mainly imaging) using ultrasound, as well as therapeutic applications of ultrasound. In diagnosis, it is used to create an image of internal body structures such as tendons, muscles, joints, ...
can also be used in establishing diagnosis.
Intermittent fever in malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...
is a common cause of intermittent fever and it has following types.
Quotidian fever
Bouts of fever occurring daily (24-hour periodicity) for a few hours, typical of ''
Plasmodium falciparum
''Plasmodium falciparum'' is a Unicellular organism, unicellular protozoan parasite of humans and is the deadliest species of ''Plasmodium'' that causes malaria in humans. The parasite is transmitted through the bite of a female ''Anopheles'' mos ...
''.
Tertian fever
Fever occurs after an interval of two days (48-hour periodicity), typical of ''
Plasmodium vivax
''Plasmodium vivax'' is a protozoal parasite and a human pathogen. This parasite is the most frequent and widely distributed cause of recurring malaria. Although it is less virulent than ''Plasmodium falciparum'', the deadliest of the five huma ...
'' and ''
Plasmodium ovale''.
Quartan fever
Fever occurs after an interval of three days (72-hour periodicity), typical of ''
Plasmodium falciparum
''Plasmodium falciparum'' is a Unicellular organism, unicellular protozoan parasite of humans and is the deadliest species of ''Plasmodium'' that causes malaria in humans. The parasite is transmitted through the bite of a female ''Anopheles'' mos ...
''.
Examples
Infectious causes of intermittent fever
The following are examples of infectious diseases that may feature intermittent fever.
*
Malaria
Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...
*
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...
*
Sepsis
Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening condition that arises when the body's response to infection causes injury to its own tissues and organs.
This initial stage of sepsis is followed by suppression of the immune system. Common signs and s ...
*
Kala azar
Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), also known as kala-azar (Hindi: kālā āzār, "black sickness") or "black fever", is the most severe form of leishmaniasis and, without proper diagnosis and treatment, is associated with high fatality. Leishmaniasi ...
*
Borreliosis
Lyme disease, also known as Lyme borreliosis, is a tick-borne disease caused by species of ''Borrelia'' bacteria, transmitted by blood-feeding ticks in the genus ''Ixodes''. It is the most common disease spread by ticks in the Northern Hem ...
(Lyme disease)
*
Rat-bite fever
*
Epstein-barr virus
* Chronic
meningococcemia.
Inflammatory causes of intermittent fever
Adult-onset Still's disease
Adult-onset Still's disease (AOSD) is a form of Still's disease, a rare systemic autoinflammatory disease characterized by the classic triad of fevers, joint pain, and a distinctive salmon-colored bumpy rash. The disease is considered a diagn ...
is an inflammatory disease that may cause intermittent fever, characteristically a quotidian fever that spikes once or twice in the late afternoon to evening.
Management
Antipyretics like
ibuprofen
Ibuprofen is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that is used to relieve pain, fever, and inflammation. This includes dysmenorrhea, painful menstrual periods, migraines, and rheumatoid arthritis. It can be taken oral administration, ...
and
paracetamol
Paracetamol, or acetaminophen, is a non-opioid analgesic and antipyretic agent used to treat fever and mild to moderate pain. It is a widely available over-the-counter drug sold under various brand names, including Tylenol and Panadol.
Parac ...
are used for fever and body aches.
Antibiotics
An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting pathogenic bacteria, bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the therapy ...
are also used for any underlying infection. For treating malaria, anti-malarial drugs like
quinine
Quinine is a medication used to treat malaria and babesiosis. This includes the treatment of malaria due to ''Plasmodium falciparum'' that is resistant to chloroquine when artesunate is not available. While sometimes used for nocturnal leg ...
,
chloroquine
Chloroquine is an antiparasitic medication that treats malaria. It works by increasing the levels of heme in the blood, a substance toxic to the malarial parasite. This kills the parasite and stops the infection from spreading. Certain types ...
and
primaquine are given.
See also
*
Continuous fever
*
Relapsing fever
Relapsing fever is a vector-borne disease caused by infection with certain bacteria in the genus '' Borrelia'', which is transmitted through the bites of lice, soft-bodied ticks (genus '' Ornithodoros''), or hard-bodied ticks (Genus Ixodes).
...
*
Undulant fever
*
Remittent fever
*
Neutropenic fever
* Cyclic fever; called
Pel–Ebstein fever in
Hodgkin's lymphoma
Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a type of lymphoma in which cancer originates from a specific type of white blood cell called lymphocytes, where multinucleated Reed–Sternberg cells (RS cells) are present in the lymph nodes. The condition was named a ...
References
{{reflist
Fever
Malaria
Tuberculosis