Fever, an abnormal rise in body temperature, is sometimes accompanied by chills. With flu, malaria, and certain other diseases, even may occur or alternate with sweating and chills.

The hypothalamus, which is part of the brain, controls the body's thermostat. It sets the body's temperature normally at about 98.6°F (37°C) when taken orally or about 99.6°F (37.5°C) when taken rectally. Your temperature is slightly lower when you first awake in the morning; this is referred to as the body's basal temperature.

Body temperature rises for a number of reasons, but the most common is the invasion of infectious organisms, which induce the bloods disease-fighting white cells to release pyrogen, a chemical that travels to the brain and prompts the hypothalamus to reset the body's thermostat at a higher level. The reaction is part of the body's effort to kill the organisms, which often cannot survive a high body temperature.

Diagnostic Studies and Procedures

Because fever is a symptom of a wide range of disorders and not an illness in itself, diagnosis focuses on finding the cause. Diagnostic studies may consist of blood tests, various cultures, X-rays, and possibly a biopsy.

Medical Treatments

The cause of a fever determines whether or not treatment is necessary. Many doctors feel that if a fever does not exceed 102°F (39°C), it is best to leave it alone. However, a prolonged high fever or one above 103°F (39.5°C) can bring on dehydration, headache, nausea, and convulsions, especially in young children. In the frail elderly, an extremely high fever may be life threatening.

In such cases, aspirin and acetaminophen are the most effective drugs for lowering a fever. For very young children -- and for anyone with a swallowing problem -- pills can be pulverized and mixed with mashed banana or applesauce. Be sure to consult a doctor before giving aspirin to anyone under age 18. In this age group, aspirin given during a viral infection increases the risk of Reye's syndrome, a potentially fatal disorder.

Alternative Therapies

Several alternative therapies can lower a fever. Such approaches may be useful adjuncts to medical treatment.

Aromatherapy. Aromatic oils, said to reduce a fever when massaged into the skin or converted to vapor for inhalation, include camphor, eucalyptus, lemon, and hyssop.

Herbal Medicine. Tea made with the dried bupleurum root can be effective, as can tea made from boncset, or ague-weed, a remedy favored by Native Americans to treat high fevers.

Homeopathy. Numerous remedies are recommended, including aconite, arnica, arsenicum, Pulsatilla, pyrogen, and hyoscyamus. The cause and nature of the fever determines what to use.

Hydrotherapy. Applying a cold compress to the forehead and sponging the body with cool or tepid water can quickly reduce a high fever. Do not sponge a baby with alcohol, however; the fumes can be dangerous.

Self-Treatment

Drink extra fluids to replace those lost through sweating. Good choices are water, fruit juice, lemonade, herbal teas, and clear broth. Avoid alcohol and beverages containing caffeine, which have a diuretic effect that can cause additional fluid loss.

Extra sleep is also important. Stay in bed as much as possible. If chills accompany the fever, use a light blanket that can be removed during periods of fever and sweating.

Other Causes of Fever

A continuing low-grade fever may be a warning sign of tuberculosis and of some types of cancer, especially leukemia and Hodgkin's disease. Fever is also a symptom of mononucleosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and lupus. A sudden high temperature may indicate an acute infection, such as appendicitis. In women, pelvic inflammatory disease or toxic shock syndrome can bring on a high fever, while in children, middle ear infections are a common cause.

Having the right equipment easily accessible to deal with a sport injury is crucial to being able to deal with the situation effectively. Every sport is different and will have different requirements. Below is a list of things you should consider having in your sport first aid kit.

In competitive swimming there are 4 official strokes. These are front crawl or front stroke (often called freestyle or just free), backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly (or just fly). Races can include any of these strokes, from as little a distance as 25 meters (m), to hundreds of meters.

Use this list of questions as a checklist before starting any medication

1. What is the name of the drug? (Be sure to ask about both the brand name and the generic name and write them down so you can be certain to remember them.)
2. What exactly is the drug supposed to do?
3. How long will it lake for me effects of the drug to become apparent?
4. Should the drug be taken with food or on an empty stomach? Are there any foods I should avoid while taking the drug? Or any foods I should add to my diet?
5. What are the drug's most common side effects? Which are the most serious? What should be done if they appear?
6. How much medication should I take? How often? For how long?
7. Should l abstain from alcohol while taking this drug?
8. Is there an expiration date on the medication's label? How should I store the drug? Should I discard any that is left over? If so, how should this be done?
9. What should I do if I miss a scheduled dose?
10. Are there any activities to avoid while using this medication?
11. How much does the drug cost? Is there an equivalent generic form that is less expensive?
12. Is the drug available in other, perhaps more convenient, forms?
13. What written information is available on this drug and where can it be found?
14. Are there any alternatives to drug therapy for the ailment, such as exercise, nutrition therapy, or alternative treatments?

(vertigo, disequilibrium, lightheadedness)

Vision, touch, hearing, the vestibular system in the inner ear, and multiple areas of the brain all contribute to helping maintain balance and orientation in space. Damage to any of these senses or areas can cause dizziness.

Jaundice is a yellowing of the skin, whites of the eyes, and mucous membranes. The discoloration results from a buildup in the blood of bilirubin, a pigment produced when the hemoglobin in worn-out red blood cells is broken down so that its iron can be recycled to make new blood cells.

Normally, the liver metabolizes and converts bilirubin into substances that are transported with bile into the intestinal tract to be eliminated. These byproducts give feces its brown color.

Caution must be used before putting an athlete back into the game. It's important to realize that sometimes a lot of pressure may exist to get the athlete back in the game. This pressure may come from parents who want to see their son/daughter play, from other athletes, from the coach, or even from the player themselves. But if a proper evaluation isn't performed the athlete may end up with even more severe injuries.

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women, and second only to lung cancer in female cancer mortality. Presently, about one in nine American women develops this disease at some time in her life, compared to one in 17 in 1950. Experts are uncertain whether this represents a true rise in the incidence of breast cancer or improved detection of it due to mammography and better public awareness.

Kidney failure occurs when these organs cease to remove toxic wastes from the blood and excrete it in the urine. There are many causes of kidney failure but it follows one of two courses: Acute kidney failure comes on suddenly There is an abrupt decrease in urination and widespread swelling, or edema. Warning signs include unexplained weight gain of two or more pounds a day, facial puffiness, nausea, and marked weakness. As the failure progresses, the breath may have a urine odor. This is a life-threatening medical emergency, yet most patients eventually recover kidney function.

(Mitral, Aortic, Tricuspid, and Pulmonary Stenosis and Regurgitation)

The heart has four valves that control the flow of blood passing in and out of its chambers. A defect or disease in any one of them will disrupt normal flow. There are two categories of disorder: stenosis, in which a valve fails to open fully, and insufficiency, or regurgitation, in which it does not close properly.

Medical researchers constantly seek new and better treatments, especially for incurable diseases such as AIDS and cancer. Before these can be offered to humans, even on an experimental basis, they must undergo extensive testing, a process during which most are weeded out. Some turn out to be ineffective, others unsafe, and still others are not considered an improvement over existing therapies. Although the list of experimental treatments keeps changing, here are a few that look the most promising in the 1990s.

A boil is a painful swelling of the skin caused by a bacterial infection in a hair follicle. Technically called furuncles, boils usually develop in hairy parts of the body that are exposed to friction and pressure. They appear most often on the face, scalp, back of the neck, armpits, and buttocks, and are more common in men than in women.

(Pleural Effusion; Pleural Inflammation)

Pleurisy is an inflammation of the pleura, the thin, double membrane that covers the lungs and lines the chest cavity. Sometimes fluid accumulates in the space between the layers of the pleural membrane, a condition called pleural effusion.

A tubal, or ectopic, pregnancy occurs when a fertilized egg becomes implanted in one of the fallopian tubes (or less commonly, elsewhere in the pelvic cavity) rather than in the uterus. Normally, an egg enters a fallopian tube after it is released from an ovary during ovulation. When conception takes place, it usually does so within the tube and the fertilized egg then proceeds to the uterus. If all goes well, pregnancy is established. In about 1 in 80 pregnancies in the United States, however, something goes wrong; the fertilized egg fails to reach the uterus and develops instead in the tube.

In everyday language hysteria refers to any emotional extreme. For example, an episode of hysterica, weeping or laughter. When used medically, the word refers to a disorder, formerly called hysterical neurosis, in which unconscious psychological conflict is transformed into physical, or somatic, symptoms.