ABSTRACT
Fever is usually present, but the very young, old or frail patients may have a normal temperature. Sepsis is ‘life-threatening organ dysfunction due to a dysregulated host response to infection’. It is underrecognised in primary care and it has a high mortality. Sometimes fever alone is the presenting problem. In UK primary care, this is more likely to be due to viral than bacterial infection. Many of the ‘red flags’ for different conditions indicate a risk of sepsis. Fever itself does not cause any harm, and may aid recovery. It is important to make parents and patients aware that the fever caused by an infection is not dangerous but is ‘a sign that the immune system is busy’. Antipyretic medicine is sometimes given to children by clinicians as a test, because a good response is thought to exclude serious illness.
