What is a Fever? And the 98.6 degree myth.

A discussion of the origin of the myth that normal body temperature is 98.6, as well as a discussion of what temperature we should use to define the presence of a fever. Select References (Sorry, some of these are behind a paywall): Carl Reinhold August Wunderlich and the evolution of clinical thermometry: Normal oral, rectal, tympanic and axillary body temperature in adult men and women: a systematic literature review: Individual differences in normal body temperature: longitudinal big data analysis of patient records: Decreasing human body temperature in the United States since the industrial revolution: Using Smartphone Crowdsourcing to Redefine Normal and Febrile Temperatures in Adults: Results from the Feverprints Study: (I didn’t include discussion of this study specifically, but