Valoración de la gravedad del síndrome febril en lactantes en un Hospital de Guayaquil.

Abstract

Fever syndrome in infants is one of the leading reasons for seeking care in health services, mainly due to the difficulty of determining its severity at early stages. For this reason, it is essential to use assessment tools that allow a more comprehensive evaluation of the child’s condition. Objective: To assess febrile syndrome in infants treated in the pediatric emergency department of a hospital in Guayaquil. Methodology: A quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted. Data collection techniques included direct observation and surveys administered to primary caregivers. The instruments used were the Yale Observation Scale and the NANDA nursing taxonomy. The sample consisted of 300 infants. Results: The findings showed that the majority of infants were male (55%), aged between 6-18 months (46.7%), with 25% presenting a history of low birth weight. The most notable indicators from the Yale Scale were hydration status (36.7%), level of alertness (33.3%), and social response (31.7%), reflecting alterations in the infants’ general condition. In addition, the most frequent nursing diagnoses identified were hyperthermia (100%), risk of infection (93.3%), ineffective thermoregulation (73.3%), deficient fluid volume (60%), and inadequate nutritional intake (50%), largely associated with fluid loss due to fever and decreased appetite. Conclusion: Based on the Yale Scale scores, 50% of cases were classified as low risk, 33.3% as moderate risk, and 16.7% as high risk. These results demonstrate that the scale is an effective tool for assessing the severity of febrile syndrome, supporting comprehensive evaluation and facilitating timely clinical decision-making in nursing care.