Triage / Fever / Ministry of Health three-level color-coded triage · Observational Study

Triage Performance and Physiological Predictors of Serious Illness in Febrile Children in the Pediatric Emergency Department

ClinicalTrials.gov · July 31, 2026

Preliminary Why this matters to you Expert discussion

Early or partial results. Treat as a signal, not a conclusion.

AI Summary

This is a planned prospective observational cohort study, not yet recruiting, that will evaluate whether the Turkish Ministry of Health three-level color-coded triage system predicts serious clinical outcomes in febrile children aged 0–18 years and whether physiological parameters add prognostic value. No results are available; the registry entry describes study design and planned endpoints only.

What was studied

Observational. Fever, Triage, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Serious Bacterial Infection, Sepsis; age from 0 Years; to 18 Years. Intervention: Febrile children in the pediatric emergency department. n = 3,000. 10 sites: Turkey (Türkiye).

Key findings

Safety

Safety was not reported in the material analysed. Check the source before drawing any conclusion about harm.

Who this may help

Once results are reported, this study will inform whether the Ministry of Health triage system reliably identifies serious bacterial infection and sepsis in febrile children, and whether routine physiological parameters captured at triage improve risk stratification. Clinicians should monitor for publication of results to assess real-world triage performance.

Plain-language summary

This is a planned observational cohort study with no results yet posted; it will assess triage performance in febrile children but enrollment has not begun.

Study design

As stated by the source record.

MethodsCohort model. Prospective time perspective. Primary outcome measure: Composite serious clinical outcome (assessed at 30 Dys)

DesignObservational

PopulationFever, Triage, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Serious Bacterial Infection, Sepsis; age from 0 Years; to 18 Years

Sample size3,000

InterventionFebrile children in the pediatric emergency department

Setting10 sites: Turkey (Türkiye)

Reported figures

Quoted from the source exactly as published.

Planned enrollment3000

Number of centers10

Primary outcome measureComposite serious clinical outcome at 30 days

Enrollment period3 months

Age range0–18 years

Clinical bottom line

Caveats

Registry record only; no results are reported or available.
No control or comparator group; observational design limits causal inference.
Analysis plan, handling of missing data, and pre-specified subgroups not described in registry entry.
Generalizability to non-Turkish settings and health systems unknown.

Evidence assessment

Graded across the dimensions that decide whether you should act, each from what the source actually supports. There is no single score, and where a dimension was not assessed it says so.

Study design

moderate

Prospective multicenter observational cohort; no randomization or control arm.

Directness

strong

Directly examines triage system performance in target population presenting with fever.

Consistency

insufficient

Single study design; consistency with other evidence cannot be assessed from registry record.

Risk of bias

insufficient

Registry record does not describe allocation concealment, blinding, loss to follow-up, or analysis plan.

Sample adequacy

moderate

Planned enrollment 3000 participants across 10 centers; adequate for composite outcome detection.

What is missing. This record has no key findings. That is a gap in the analysis, not a judgement about the study.

Source abstract

Registry record from ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT07739004). This is a study registration, not published results. Lead sponsor: TC Erciyes University. Recruitment status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING. Study type: OBSERVATIONAL. Enrollment: 3000 participants (ESTIMATED). Conditions: Fever, Triage, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Serious Bacterial Infection, Sepsis. Interventions: DIAGNOSTIC_TEST: Ministry of Health three-level color-coded triage. Primary outcome measures: Composite serious clinical outcome , 30 Dys. Brief summary: This multicenter prospective observational cohort study evaluates how well the initial triage category assigned by the Turkish Ministry of Health three-level color-coded triage system (Red-Yellow-Green) predicts serious clinical outcomes in children aged 0-18 years who present with fever to pediatric emergency departments. The study additionally assesses whether physiological parameters recorded at triage (heart rate, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation, capillary refill time, AVPU level of consciousness, and general appearance) provide independent and incremental prognostic value beyond the assigned triage category. Ten centers across Turkey will enroll consecutive eligible febrile children over a 3-month period. Routine clinical care and triage decisions are not altered by the study. The primary outcome is a composite serious clinical outcome. The study is reported in accordance with the STROBE and TRIPOD statements.

Follow from this

Taken from the source record, never inferred. Follow any of these and new work involving them reaches your briefing.

TriageFeverNCT07739004Ministry of Health three-level color-coded triagePediatric Emergency MedicineTC Erciyes University