Types of Fever & Their Patterns

Interactive visualization of fever curves and associated conditions.

Fever Pattern Summary

Type	Pattern	Duration	Conditions
Remittent	Fluctuates but never returns to normal in 24h	24 hours	Acute bacterial endocarditis, viral infections
Continuous	Persistent high fever with minimal fluctuation	24 hours	Typhoid, UTIs
Intermittent	Spikes return to baseline daily	24 hours	Pyogenic infections, TB, JIA
Undulant	Wave-like rise and fall over days	Days to weeks	Brucellosis
Biphasic	Two peaks with a break in between	Over several days	Dengue fever
Recurrent	Episodic fever with long afebrile intervals	Days to years	Relapsing fever, Hodgkin’s lymphoma

Fever patterns can be masked by antipyretics, antibiotics, or early treatment. Always correlate with history, labs, and imaging.

Pattern: Temperature fluctuates significantly (>1°C) but does not return to normal within 24 hours.

Associated Conditions: Acute bacterial endocarditis, severe viral infections.

Pattern: High, steady temperature with minimal variation (<1°C).

Associated Conditions: Typhoid fever, urinary tract infections.

Pattern: Sudden spikes followed by a return to normal or subnormal levels within 24 hours.

Associated Conditions: Pyogenic abscesses, tuberculosis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

Pattern: Gradual rise and fall in temperature over several days, resembling waves.

Associated Conditions: Brucellosis (also called “Malta fever” or “Bang’s disease”).

Pattern: Two distinct fever phases separated by a brief afebrile period.

Associated Conditions: Dengue fever, some viral infections.

Pattern: Episodes of fever recurring after days, weeks, or even years of normal temperature.

Associated Conditions: Tick-borne relapsing fever, Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

🔔 Tip: Use the tabs above to explore each fever type with an interactive temperature curve.