About Fever in Children

A member of the American College of Emergency Physicians, Dr. Zachary Lutsky is currently an attending physician at the Santa Clara Medical Center. With almost two decades of experience in emergency medicine, Dr. Zachary Lutsky has treated a variety of emergency medical conditions, including strokes, , heart attacks, and traffic injuries, as well as severe fever in children.

Fever occurs when the body temperature rises above the normal range (normal being between 97.4 and 99.6 degrees Fahrenheit). Normally, proper hydration, OTC medication, and enough rest calm most fevers within three to four days. However, there are some instances when immediate medical evaluation and special treatment is required. Seek immediate medical care if:

1. The child is a newborn.

2. The child’s fever is accompanied by seizures, regardless of age.

3. The child is between 3 to 6 months of age and has a rectal temperature reading 103 degrees Fahrenheit or higher, or fussiness along with a rectal temperature anywhere above 99.6 degrees Fahrenheit.

4. The child is between 6 months and 2 years of age and has a temperature of 102 degrees Fahrenheit or higher accompanied by cough or diarrhea that persists for more than a day.

5. The child is more than 2 years of age and has a fever accompanied by a painful and stiff neck, vomiting, and severe headache. This can be a sign of meningitis.

6. A fever occurs after a child has been exposed to hot temperatures. This can be a sign of heatstroke.

An Overview of Emergency Medicine

An attending physician at the emergency department of the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, Zachary Lutsky, MD worked as an emergency physician at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles for 11 years. Dr. Zachary Lutsky deals with different kinds of patients and health-related problems, including heart attacks and strokes, births, car accidents, and gunshot wounds.

Emergency medicine is a medical specialty that deals with recognition, initial evaluation, diagnosis, and management of acutely injured or ill patients. Emergency medicine is not location-biased as it is practiced in different settings, including freestanding emergency departments (EDs), hospitals, telemedicine, emergency medical response vehicles, etcetera.

Patients can show up with varying degrees of health problems without a diagnosis and still get treated by an emergency physician. This practice is so because emergency medicine is a fast-paced, high-pressure, and diverse medical specialty that demands extensive medical knowledge and well-honed technical and clinical skills. The emphasis of emergency medicine is on acute-care and pre-hospital care of the other specialties in medicine. Emergency physicians offer treatment to all age groups in different medical conditions with varying degrees of severity.

Overuse of Antibiotics Contributes to Antibiotic Resistance

After earning a medical degree from the Rosalind Franklin University Chicago School of Medicine and completing residencies and internships in emergency medicine, Dr. Zachary Lutsky took on attending physician roles at several hospitals in Santa Clara, Santa Monica, and Los Angeles, California. Dr. Zachary Lutsky has a professional interest in topics concerning emergency medical care, including the increase in antibiotic-resistant pathogens.

For nearly a century, antibiotics have been a vital treatment for managing infections caused by bacteria. Over time, these microbes can develop defense mechanisms, making antibiotics less effective. While bacteria undergo this process naturally, the overuse and misuse of this type of medication is accelerating antibiotic resistance.

For example, antibiotics are sometimes prescribed for viral illnesses (which do not respond to antibiotics) or as a prophylactic (which can kill good bacteria that help prevent infection). This type of overuse contributes to infectious bacteria developing antibiotic resistance through exposure to commonly-prescribed antibiotics. This leads to people needing stronger antibiotics to combat infections.

Relatedly, large-scale meat producers use antibiotics indiscriminately to prevent illness in livestock. This also enables microbes to evolve and adapt to medications. Once bacteria have become resistant, they can sometimes pass this resistance to other microbes. As a result, antibiotic resistance can spread throughout a healthcare center or even travel to other parts of the world.

About the ACEP Wellness and Assistance Program

An emergency medicine physician in Los Angeles, California, Zachary Lutsky spent more than a decade in an attending position at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Board-certified in emergency medicine, Dr. Zachary Lutsky maintains membership in professional organizations including the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP).

The American College of Emergency Physicians works to support both the physical and mental health of physicians through initiatives such as the ACEP Wellness & Assistance Program. In coordination with Mines & Associates, the program provides physicians with access to three counseling or wellness sessions to help them bear the emotional and physical burden of their work.

Counseling sessions, which can take place in person or by phone, might help doctors develop tools to combat anxiety, depression, substance abuse, or relationship issues. Alternately, 30-minute wellness phone calls from a certified wellness coach can help physicians identify steps to pursue their fitness and wellness goals. The strictly confidential program is available for free to all ACEP members.