Pharmacists should focus on four red flag symptoms when considering if a young child has meningitis, new evidence published in the British Journal of General Practice has found. 
In a study comparing the symptoms of 1,212 children presenting to GPs in Oxfordshire and Somerset with those reported in 345 children with meningitis, only confusion, photophobia, neck stiffness and leg pain were found to be highly specific for meningococcal disease, with rash also indicative. 
Rash and drowsiness were also found to be useful for diagnosis, with their absence helping to rule out the condition, the study found. 
However, symptoms including headache, pale colour and cold hands and feet were found to be less helpful. Headache and pallor were shown to be more common in children with minor febrile infections, while cold peripheries have only a small likelihood of indicating meningitis.