Chills
Alternate Names : Rigors, Shivering
What to Expect at your Health Care Provider's Office
The health care provider will obtain your medical history and will perform a physical examination.
Medical history questions documenting chills in detail may include the following:
- Qquality
- Is it a cold feeling only?
- Are you actually shaking ?
- What has been the highest body temperature associated with the chills?
- Time pattern
- Did the chills happen only once or are there multiple separate occurrences (episodic)?
- How long does each attack last (for how many hours)?
- Did chills occur within 4 to 6 hours after exposure to something that you or your child are allergic to?
- Did they begin suddenly?
- Do they occur repeatedly (recurrent)?
- How often (how many days between episodes of chills)?
- What other associated symptoms are present?
The physical examination may include emphasis on the skin, eyes, ears, nose, throat, neck, chest, and abdomen. Body temperature will likely be checked.
Diagnostic tests that may be performed include the following:
Treatment depends on the duration of the chills, and accompanying symptoms, especially fever.
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