Fever Patterns

  • Continuous: Temp stays elevated with minimal fluctuation.
    • DDx: Typhoid feverlobar pneumonia, brucellosis.
  • Intermittent: Temp spikes then returns to normal daily.
    • DDx: Malaria, pyogenic abscess, sepsis, TB.
  • Relapsing: Febrile episodes separated by afebrile days.
    • DDx: Borrelia spp. (relapsing fever), rat-bite fever.
  • Pel-Ebstein: Cyclical fever (1-2 weeks on, 1-2 weeks off).
    • Classic Association: Hodgkin lymphoma.

Mnemonic

1、稽留热(continuous):稽大爷上班

稽大爷(大叶性肺炎)上(伤寒)班(斑疹伤寒)。

2、弛张热:张飞拜师结盟

张飞拜(败血症)师(风湿热)结(重症肺结核)盟(化脓性炎症)。

3、间歇热:急于歇息

急(疟疾)于(肾盂肾炎)歇(间歇热)息。

4、回归热(Relapsing):回家挥霍

回(回归热)家挥霍(霍奇金病)。 5、波状热(Undulant):布鲁氏病


Key Fever Associations

  • Fever + Relative Bradycardia (Faget Sign): Pulse is inappropriately slow for temp.
    • DDx: Typhoid feverLegionella, Yellow fever, brucellosis.
  • Fever + Rash on Palms/Soles:
    • DDx: Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF), secondary syphilis, meningococcemia, Coxsackie A (Hand-Foot-Mouth).
  • Fever + Eschar: Dark, crusted ulcer at bite site.
    • DDx: Scrub typhus (Orientia), Rickettsialpox, anthrax.
  • Fever + Biphasic (“Saddleback”) Pattern: Fever, remission, then second fever.
    • DDx: Dengue fever, leptospirosis.

Fever of Unknown Origin (FUO)

  • Definition: Temp >38.3°C for ≥3 weeks with no Dx after 1 week of inpatient workup.
  • Common Causes (atypical presentation of common disease):
    • Infection: Occult abscess (e.g., abdominal), TB (esp. extrapulmonary), endocarditis.
    • Neoplasm: Lymphoma, leukemia, renal cell carcinoma.
    • Autoimmune: Still’s disease, Giant Cell Arteritis (elderly), SLE.