title: Fifteen-minute consultation: The infant with frequent infections.
abstract: Children with frequent or recurrent infections commonly present to medical practitioners in both primary and secondary care. Here we provide a structured approach to the consultation of the infant under 2 years of age with frequent infections. The key is a focused history and examination to elicit red flags to an underlying diagnosis, while at the same time seeking benign explanations for the frequency of infections, which account for the majority of children, thereby avoiding unnecessary investigations.
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases Unit, Department of General Medicine, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, Australia.
authors.forename: Penelope A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Bryant
authors.forename: Mike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: South
mesh_terms: D015331:Cohort Studies; D003141:Communicable Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007154:Immune System Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy*; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D012307:Risk Factors; D055502:Secondary Prevention
keywords: Allergy; Immunology; Infectious Diseases; Respiratory