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Article: Sneaky pneumonia.(Children in Hospitals)
- Article from:
- Pediatrics for Parents
- Article date:
- December 1, 2007
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 Pediatrics for Parents, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Sarah is a cute, blonde, blue-eyed eight year old who was admitted to our service several weeks ago for unexplained fever. According to her mother she had been sick for days, with no significant symptoms except fever, and on a few occasions this fever had been excessively high--greater than 103[degrees]F.
When the ER doctor called me with Sarah's history, I asked him about labs and X-rays. Her blood counts did indicate infection but, as usual, were not specific as to the location and severity of the infection. I asked him if he had obtained a chest X-ray, and he informed me that he thought this would be a waste of resources since she exhibited no respiratory ...