Which term denotes elevated body temperature?

Which term denotes elevated body temperature?

• A. Enterotomy
• B. Epistaxis
• C. Erythema/Erythematous
• D. Febrile

Answer: (D)

Elevated body temperature is described as febrile. Febrile describes a patient who has a fever, meaning the body’s thermostat in the brain has been raised by substances called pyrogens in response to infection, inflammation, or other disease processes. In practice, you determine this by measuring temperature, usually rectally in small animals; a temperature above the normal species range indicates fever. The word emphasizes the fever state rather than the cause or a procedure. The other terms refer to different things: an enterotomy is a surgical incision into the intestine, epistaxis is a nosebleed, and erythema is redness of the skin due to increased blood flow or inflammation.

Elevated body temperature is described as febrile. Febrile describes a patient who has a fever, meaning the body’s thermostat in the brain has been raised by substances called pyrogens in response to infection, inflammation, or other disease processes. In practice, you determine this by measuring temperature, usually rectally in small animals; a temperature above the normal species range indicates fever. The word emphasizes the fever state rather than the cause or a procedure. The other terms refer to different things: an enterotomy is a surgical incision into the intestine, epistaxis is a nosebleed, and erythema is redness of the skin due to increased blood flow or inflammation.