High fever and headache should not be ignored.
Headaches and high fevers are symptoms of a wide variety of ailments from the common cold to meningitis. According to the Mayo Clinic, a high fever is any fever over 103 degrees F.
Significance
The Mayo Clinic states that a fever is the body's way of fighting some kind of infection. But the high fever does not always mean the illness is serious.
Minor Illnesses
Causes of high fever with headache can come from the flu, bad reaction to a new medication or as a reaction to a bad sunburn (called sun poisoning).
Major Illnesses
Major illnesses that list high fever and headache as part of their symptoms include West Nile virus, Dengue fever, meningitis, rare forms of cancer or symptoms of an infected wound.
Considerations
In order for a doctor to properly diagnose the cause of the high fever and headache, any other symptom need to be reported, such as stiff neck, itchy skin, body aches or nausea.
Warning
"Migraines For Dummies" (Diane Stafford and Jennifer Shoquist, MD; 2003) notes that any headache lasting longer than 72 hours or is accompanied by high fever or loss of coordination should be treated as an emergency.
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