Baseline characteristics of the study population (n=38 480)
| All (n=38 480) | WBC measured (n=17 082) | Missing total population | |
| Age | |||
| Median (IQR) | 2.8 (1.3–5.6) | 2.8 (1.3–6.1) | – |
| Sex (male), n (%) | 21 110 (54.9) | 9235 (54.1) | – |
| Comorbidity, n (%) | 6494 (16.9) | 3227 (18.9) | 370 (1.0) |
| Referred, n (%) | 16 076 (41.8) | 9172 (53.7) | 1165 (3.0) |
| Ill appearance, n (%) | 6007 (15.6) | 4694 (27.5) | 1721 (4.5) |
| Duration of fever (days) | 2775 (7.2) | ||
| Median (IQR) | 1.5 (0.5–3.0) | 1.5 (0.5–3.0) | |
| Triage urgency, n (%) | 1176 (3.1) | ||
| Low: standard, non-urgent | 24 085 (62.6) | 9792 (57.3) | |
| Intermediate/High: immediate, very urgent, intermediate | 13 219 (34.4) | 6772 (39.6) | |
| Disposition, n (%) | 56 (0.1) | ||
| Discharged home | 24 644 (64.0) | 9143 (53.5) | |
| Admission to the ward | 13 403 (34.8) | 7720 (45.2) | |
| Admission to the ICU | 157 (0.4) | 132 (0.8) | |
| Dead in ED | 1 (0.0) | 1 (0.0) | |
| Left without being seen | 219 (0.6) | 65 (0.4) | |
| Focus of infection, n (%) | 27 (0.1) | ||
| URTI/ENT | 20 119 (52.3) | 7271 (42.6) | |
| LRTI | 5652 (14.7) | 2952 (17.3) | |
| Gastrointestinal/Surgical abdomen | 3988 (10.4) | 2224 (13.0) | |
| Urinary tract | 1353 (3.5) | 915 (5.4) | |
| Childhood exanthems/Influenza-like illness | 1888 (4.9) | 809 (4.7) | |
| Soft tissue or skin/Musculoskeletal | 982 (2.6) | 546 (3.2) | |
| Sepsis/Meningitis | 291 (0.8) | 277 (1.6) | |
| Other | 4180 (10.9) | 2084 (12.2) | |
| ILSI, n (%) | 643 (1.7) | 469 (2.7) | – |
| SBI, n (%) | 2272 (5.9) | 1854 (10.9) | – |
| Definite bacterial | 1122 (49.4) | 871 (47.0) | |
| Probable bacterial | 1150 (50.6) | 983 (53.0) |
ED, emergency department; ENT, ear, nose and throat; ICU, intensive care unit; ILSI, immediate lifesaving intervention; LRTI, lower respiratory tract infection; SBI, serious bacterial infection; URTI, upper respiratory tract infection; WBC, white blood cell count.