Correlation between fever and respiratory rate in children under 5 years of age

Introduction: Increased body temperature results in raised respiratory rate (RR) leading to tachypnea. According to World Health Organization (WHO), the diagnosis of pneumonia based on the presence of tachypnea can be overestimated during fever. The aim of this study is to determine the correlation between fever and RR in febrile children under five years of age. Patients and Method: A prospective study of correlation in children between 2 and 60 months was performed. RR and body temperature were measured on Emergency Room admission and after receiving acetaminophen. The correlation between the temperature change and the change in the RR was calculated. The frequency of tachypnea at admission and after normalizing the temperature was determined. Results: 362 patients were included, mean age 23.7 months old. RR in children under one year of age decreased 12.9 breaths per minute after normalizing the temperature, in older than one year of age, it decreased 10.7 breaths per minute. The r(2) coefficient between temperature and RR was 0.08 for children under one year and 0.11 for older. Among the children who were tachypneic, 57% did not present this condition after normalizing the temperature. Conclusions: It is recommended to reevaluate RR in all febrile children after normalizing the temperature and before diagnosing tachypnea.