Impact of Procalcitonin on the Management of Children Aged 1 to 36 Month Presenting With a Fever Without a Source

The Impact of Procalcitonin on the Management of Children Aged 1 to 36 Month Presenting With a Fever Without a Source

Serious bacterial infections are often difficult to detect in children with fever without source. Procalcitonin is a better blood marker of infection than White blood cell count and possibly than C-reactive protein. This could lead to a reduction in antibiotic prescription. Our objective is to evaluate the impact of Procalcitonin result on antibiotic prescription in children 1 to 36 month old with fever without source and our hypothesis is that it will lower the antibiotic prescription rate

Inclusion Criteria:

• Children 1-36 months
• With rectal temperature >38.0 C
• And no identified source of infection after history and physical examination

Exclusion Criteria:

• acquired or congenital immunodeficiency