Fever during pregnancy: what to know

Pregnancy can overlap with common infections such as a cold, flu-like illness, urinary infection, or stomach infection. Fever can also come from an infection in the lungs, skin, or another body area. The temperature reading, symptoms, pregnancy stage, medical history, and medicines all guide the assessment.

Contact your maternity or primary-care team even if the fever seems mild or you feel better after medicine. Tell them about chills, cough, sore throat, breathlessness, back pain, burning urine, abdominal pain, rash, vomiting, diarrhea, or reduced fetal movement.

Check your temperature, drink small amounts often, rest, and avoid overheating. Take only medicines your clinician or pharmacist says are suitable in pregnancy; do not start antibiotics or combine cold remedies without checking their ingredients. Keep a note of the reading, time, symptoms, and doses. Your clinician may recommend an examination, urine testing, or other checks based on the symptoms.

Seek urgent care for trouble breathing, confusion, fainting, severe headache, stiff neck, a seizure, severe abdominal or back pain, vaginal bleeding, fluid leakage, persistent vomiting, or reduced fetal movement. A fever with a rash, painful urination, or feeling rapidly worse also needs same-day medical advice.

Ask what is the likely source, whether you need tests, which medicine and dose are suitable, and how to monitor yourself at home. Confirm when to call back and whether fetal checks are needed.