🔵 [PAS 2026] - Do Febrile Infants in Their First Month of Life Still Need a Lumbar Puncture?

Summary

Lead investigators of a JAMA international pooled analysis present evidence that a three-criteria rule (negative urinalysis, procalcitonin ≤0.5, absolute neutrophil count ≤4,000) identified febrile infants under one month at low risk of bacterial meningitis, with no cases missed across more than 2,500 infants. They discuss shared decision-making with families about avoiding lumbar puncture and the multidisciplinary work needed before changing practice.