Lessons from normal heart and respiratory rates in children.

摘要

Of all the dilemmas in acute paediatrics, that of distinguishing serious life-threatening illness in young children from self-limiting, acute viral infections is probably the problem that causes most anxieties for clinicians and parents. It is not possible, nor desirable, to admit and investigate every child with a high temperature, but of equal importance is prevention of progression of serious illness or infection. The restricted ability of young children to report how they feel, especially when distressed, means that this assessment is largely based on clinical examination.