ArticleThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2008
Using vital signs to assess children with acute infections: a survey of current practice.
Article in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2008. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 55 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Diagnostic Value of Capillary Refill Time for Detecting Serious Illness in Children: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.PloS one · 2015Pooled it
- Trial
- Management and documentation of pneumonia - a comparison of patients consulting primary care and emergency care.Scandinavian journal of primary health care · 2024Article
- Effect of measuring vital signs on recognition and treatment of septic children.Paediatrics & child health · 2017Article
- Performance of Health Workers Using an Electronic Algorithm for the Management of Childhood Illness in Tanzania: A Pilot Implementation Study.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2017Article
- Translation of clinical prediction rules for febrile children to primary care practice: an observational cohort study.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2015Observational
- Symptomatic Management of Fever in Children: A National Survey of Healthcare Professionals' Practices in France.PloS one · 2015Article
- Article
- When and how do GPs record vital signs in children with acute infections? A cross-sectional study.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2012Article
- Pulse oximetry in primary care: primary care diagnostic technology update.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2011Article
- Evaluation of temperature-pulse centile charts in identifying serious bacterial illness: observational cohort study.Archives of disease in childhood · 2011Article
- Primary care management of acute illness in children.London journal of primary care · 2010Article
- Child deaths: confidential enquiry into the role and quality of UK primary care.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2009Article
- Apprehensive parents: a qualitative study of parents seeking immediate primary care for their children.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2009Article
- Managing the acutely ill child.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2008Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundGPs are advised to measure vital signs in children presenting with acute infections. Current evidence supports the value of GPs' overall assessment in determining how unwell a child is, but the additional benefit of measuring vital signs is not known.
aimTo describe the vital signs and clinical features that GPs use to assess children (aged <5 years) with acute infections. DESIGN OF STUDY: Questionnaire survey.
settingAll 210 GP principals working within a 10 mile radius of Oxford, UK.
methodData were collected on reported frequency, methods, and utility of measuring vital signs. Description of clinical features was used to assess the overall severity of illness.
resultsOne hundred and sixty-two (77%) GPs responded. Half (54%, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 47 to 62) measured temperature at least weekly, compared to pulse (21%, 95% CI = 15 to 27), and respiratory rates (17%, 95% CI = 11 to 23). Almost half of GPs (77, 48%) never measured capillary refill time. Temperature was measured most frequently using electronic aural thermometers (131/152; 86%); auscultation or counting were used for pulse and respiratory rates. A minority used pulse oximeters to assess respiratory status (30/151, 20%). GPs' thresholds for tachypnoea were similar to published values, but there was no consensus on the threshold of tachycardia. Observations of behaviour and activity were considered more useful than vital signs in assessing severity of illness.
conclusionVital signs are uncommonly measured in children in general practice and are considered less useful than observation in assessing the severity of illness. If measurement of vital signs is to become part of standard practice, the issues of inaccurate measurement and diagnostic value need to be addressed urgently.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.