♦ Webb T, et al. Pediatr Emerg Care. 2014;30:151-156.

Most infants with a chief complaint of lethargy or poor feeding who require an intervention have conditions that are clinically evident or focal exam findings that lead to diagnosis, according to a retrospective chart review of 272 patients ages 0-6 months.

Lethargy is a common complaint among infants presenting to the emergency department (ED). No studies, however, have looked at the yield of diagnostic tests on these infants to guide physicians in their evaluation.

The authors of this study sought to determine how often infants presenting to the ED with lethargy/poor feeding were diagnosed with a condition that required intervention or monitoring and to identify predictors of these diagnoses.

Charts of all infants presenting to a pediatric ED with a chief complaint of lethargy or poor feeding from January 2004 to December 2009 were reviewed. Patients were excluded if...

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