The febrile child is a common paediatric presentation in both
primary care and the emergency department. Studies from the
UK show that over one-third of contacts with out-of-hours services
are about children under five years of age, and 52% of these
calls are due to a febrile child.1
Despite being so common, the febrile child still remains
diagnostically challenging as distinguishing a routine, self-limiting
viral illness from a serious bacterial infection is not always
straightforward.
Fever has a reputation of being a sign that needs urgent medical
attention, whereas in reality, the vast majority of children will
have a mild, self-limiting illness and close observation for specific
signs of serious infection is all that is required. The notable exception
to this is infants under three months of age, whose risk of
having a serious bacterial infection if presenting with a fever is
significantly higher than in older children.
Diagnosis of fever
The diagnosis of fever often begins with the parent’s perception
that the child feels warm or hot. Subjective detection of
fever by parents and carers has been relatively well studied and
the sensitivity of palpation for the detection of fever ranges from
74% to 97%.2-5 Hence, parental perception of fever should be
taken seriously.
Mercury thermometers are no longer recommended for use
in children, and for children under five years of age, oral and rectal
thermometers are also not advised. The accuracy of forehead
strips is questionable. Three methods for taking temperatures in
this age group are currently recommended:
• Infrared tympanic thermometer
• Electronic thermometer in the axilla
• Chemical dot thermometer in the axilla.
Once fever is established, the vast majority of parents will make
contact with the health service. One study showed that 85% of
parents made contact with a healthcare professional within 24
hours of their child having a temperature. Once this contact is
made, the child will undergo a clinical assessment.
For the vast majority of these children, a condition that can be
diagnosed, assessed and treated appropriately there and then
or with simple follow-up arrangements will be found. However,
many will have fever where no source can be identified. Assessing
these children’s needs can be more difficult.
Healthcare professionals need to be fully conversant with the
norm or near norm to recognise the ill child with a possible serious
bacterial illness.