Viral testing and isolation of patients with bronchiolitis

In this issue of Pediatrics, Harris et al1 raise important issues that highlight the importance of controlling the spread of infections among young ill children. The goal of the clinical practice guideline "Diagnosis and Management of Bronchiolitis"2 was to provide recommendations for the diagnosis and management of children between 1 month and 2 years of age with bronchiolitis, based on the best available evidence, for pediatricians, family physicians, emergency medicine specialists, hospitalists, and others who care for these children. The guideline, therefore, is addressed primarily to this large and varied group of mostly primary care providers. Certainly, situations occur that require alternate emphasis and adjustments of the recommendations. Some of these we noted, but in most instances it is the individual clinician who is best able to determine the exception. The guidelines are not intended to replace clinical judgment. Children with unrecognized underlying conditions would be among these exceptions. We specifically noted in the guidelines that the recommendations do not apply to children with high-risk underlying . . . [Full Text of this Article </cgi/content/full/120/4/893>