A slight elevation of the temperature or fever may be the first indication of trouble. This may be due to an infection or injury somewhere in the body. Fever is often the body’s cry for help-a distress signal that must not be ignored. To check the temperature one must have a clinical thermometer. This little glass tube has a silver bulb at one end, containing silvery metal called mercury, which is liquid at ordinary room temperatures. The normal temperature is 98.6 degrees {Fahrenheit}, but may be slightly higher in some people and lower in others.

To take the patient’s temperature, hold the thermometer firmly at the upper end, away from the silver bulb. Shake the thermometer vigorously up and down until the little column or mercury drops to about 92 degrees. Now place the bulb of the thermometer under the patient’s tongue. Close his mouth gently, and leave the thermometer there for at least three minutes. Now take it out and read it. To do so, slowly rotate the thermometer between the tips of your fingers. If you watch carefully, you will see that the column of mercury has moved up the tube to some point, perhaps to 100 or more. Always write down the temperature at the time you have taken it. This will be useful to the doctor when the comes to see the patient.