Table 1: Demographic and clinical characteristics of patients presenting at the emergency department with SIRS best practice alert events and with corresponding electrolyte evaluation.
| Characteristics | All Patients (n = 663) |
| Age, median (IQR) y | 4 (2-8) |
| Gender, Female, No. (%) | 340 (51.3) |
| Gender, Male, No. (%) | 323 (48.7) |
| Hospital admission, No. (%) | 393 (59.3) |
| PICU admission, No. (%) | 44 (7.0) |
| Serum electrolytes, Average (± SD) | |
| Sodium (mEq/L) | 134.8 (3.0) |
| Chloride (mEq/L) | 101.9 (6.5) |
| Potassium (mEq/L) | 4.2 (0.8) |
| Glucose (mg/dL) | 113.2 (32.5) |
| Creatinine (mg/dL) | 0.4 (0.3) |
| Bicarbonate (mEq/L) | 21.0 (2.9) |
| Blood culture, No. (%) | |
| Positive | 21 (4.8) |
| Negative | 355 (52.0) |
| N/A | 286 (43.1) |
| Urine culture, No. (%) | |
| Positive | 35 (5.3) |
| Negative | 169 (25.5) |
| N/A | 459 (69.2) |
| CSF culture, No. (%) | |
| Positive | 1 (0.2) |
| Negative | 20 (3.0) |
| N/A | 642 (96.8) |
| Primary diagnosis, No. (%) | |
| Viral illness | 229 (35.5) |
| Pneumonia | 58 (8.7) |
| Gastroenteritis | 43 (6.5) |
| Influenza | 34 (5.1) |
| Otitis media | 23 (3.5) |
| Strep throat | 20 (2.9) |
| Neck abscess | 11 (2.7) |
| Upper respiratory infection | 14 (2.1) |
| Bronchiolitis | 29 (1.5) |
| Meningitis | 4 (0.6) |
| Other | 84 (12.7) |
| Secondary diagnosis, No. (%) | |
| Dehydration | 174 (26.2) |
IQR: Interquartile Range; PICU: Pediatric Intensive Care Unit; N/A: Not Available; CSF: Cerebrospinal Fluid.