ICJEM
Intercontinental Journal of Emergency Medicine

The Intercontinental Journal of Emergency Medicine aims to publish issues related to all fields of emergency medicine and all specialties involved in the management of emergencies in the hospital and prehospital environment of the highest scientific and clinical value at an international level and accepts articles on these topics. This journal is indexed by indices that are considered international scientific journal indices (DRJI, ESJI, OAJI, etc.). According to the current Associate Professorship criteria, it is within the scope of International Article 1-d. Each article published in this journal corresponds to 5 points.

eISSN: 2980-1400
Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International License.
EndNote Style

Online Manuscript System

Index
Original Article
Infectious causes and outcomes of patients with high fever in the emergency department
Abstract
Aims: The aim of this study is to investigate the reasons for presentation, diagnoses, and outcomes of patients with high fever in the emergency department.
Methods: This research is a retrospective study planned by examining the files and data of patients who presented to the emergency department between 01.03.2021 and 01.03.2023, and whose body temperature was above 38 degrees Celsius. Patient data was analyzed from patient files and the Hospital Information Management System (HIMS). The demographic characteristics, vital signs at admission, reasons for presentation, diagnoses, and outcomes of patients with complete data from patient files and HIMS were investigated.
Results: Of the 288 patients included in the study, 151 (52.4%) were male, and the mean age was 47.04 ± 18.75. When examining the reasons for patients' presentation to the emergency department, 79 (27.4%) patients presented with sore throat, and 44 (15.3%) patients presented with fever. When examining the final diagnoses of patients, acute tonsillopharyngitis was the most common diagnosis with 99 (34.4%) patients, followed by 30 (10.4%) patients with Covid-19. Regarding the outcomes of patients, 190 (66%) patients were discharged from the emergency department, 63 (21.9%) were admitted to the ward, and 26 (9%) were admitted to the intensive care unit.
Conclusion: Cases with high fever in the emergency department encompass a wide range of conditions, ranging from mild viral upper respiratory tract infections to potentially fatal infections such as meningoencephalitis and myocarditis. Therefore, in febrile cases in the emergency department, serious infectious causes should be considered in terms of the focus of fever. Additionally, non-infectious causes should also be kept in mind as they can cause high fever.

Keywords : Body temperature changes, fever, fever etiology

Download Article


1. Bleeker-Rovers CP, van der Meer JW, Oyen WJ. Fever of unknown origin.Semin Nucl Med. 2009;39(2):81-87. doi:10.1053/j.semnuclmed.2008.10.002
2. Geneva II, Cuzzo B, Fazili T, Javaid W. Normal body temperature:a systematic review. Open Forum Infect Dis. 2019;6(4):ofz032. doi:10.1093/ofid/ofz032
3. DeWitt S, Chavez SA, Perkins J, Long B, Koyfman A. Evaluation of feverin the emergency department. Am J Emerg Med. 2017;35(11):1755-1758.doi: 10.1016/j.ajem.2017.08.030
4. Steele GM, Franco-Paredes C, Chastain DB. Noninfectious causesof fever in adults. Nurse Pract. 2018;43(4):38-44. doi: 10.1097/01.NPR.0000531067.65817.7d
5. Süer, K, Güvenir M, Özgül, Y, Kaptanoğlu, A. Acil servise ateş nedeniile yapılan başvuruların değerlendirilmesi: Bir üniversite hastanesitecrübesi. Cumhuriyet Med J. 2013;35(4):480-487.
6. Luszczak M. Evaluation and management of infants and young childrenwith fever. Am Fam Physician. 2001;64(7):1219-1226.
7. Makoni M, Mukundan D. Fever. Curr Opin Pediatr. 2010;22(1):100-106.doi: 10.1097/MOP.0b013e3283350f95
8. Öztürk Ö, Topan A, Ayyıldız T. Ateş şikâyeti ile acil servise getirilençocuklarda ateş olgularının değerlendirilmesi. Sağ Bil Meslekleri Derg.2015;2(3):285-296.
9. Polat O, Kabaçam G, Güler İ, Ergişi K, Yıldız A. İbn-i Sina Hastanesi AcilServis’ ne başvuran hastaların sürveyans analizi. Türkiye Acil Tıp Derg.2005;5(2):78-81.
10. Kalemoğlu M, Keskin Ö. Gata Haydarpaşa Eğitim Hastanesi Acil Servisinintıbbi veri dökümü ve hasta karakteristiği. Tr J Emerg Med. 2002;2:2.
11. Taşdelen-Fışgın N, Genç S, Tanyel E, Yılmaz H, Baydın A, Tülek N.Acil servise başvuran hastalar arasındaki infeksiyon hastalıklarınınsıklığının incelenmesi. Klimik Derg. 2006;19:110-113.
12. Wright WF, Auwaerter PG. Fever and fever of unknown origin:review, recent advances, and lingering dogma. Open Forum Infect Dis.2020;7(5):ofaa132. doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofaa132
13. Colpan A, Onguru P, Erbay A, et al. Fever of unknown origin: analysisof 71 consecutive cases. Am J Med Sci. 2007;334(2):92-96. doi: 10.1097/MAJ.0b013e31812f5642
14. Chow A, Robinson JL. Fever of unknown origin in children: a systematicreview. World J Pediatr. 2011;7(1):5-10. doi: 10.1007/s12519-011-0240-5
15. Seguin P, Roquilly A, Mimoz O, et al. Risk factors and outcomes forprolonged versus brief fever: a prospective cohort study. Crit Care.2012;16(4):R150. doi: 10.1186/cc11465
Article available in :
Volume 2, Issue 1, 2024
Page : 16-19
https://doi.org/10.51271/ICJEM-0029
Article Information
Received : 21 Ara 2023
Accepted : 09 Mar 2024
Published : 17 Mar 2024
Corresponding Author :

Bülent Demir: Department of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Manisa Celal Bayar University, Manisa, Turkiye

[email protected]
Citation : Şaşmaz Mİ, Demir B. Infectious causes and outcomes of patients with high fever in the emergency department. Intercont J Emerg Med. 2024;2(1):16-19.

Read: 334
Cited: 0
Download : 25
_Footer