{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,15]],"date-time":"2026-10-15T12:55:20Z","timestamp":1792068920377,"version":"4.4.0"},"reference-count":24,"publisher":"American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)","issue":"6","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,1]]},"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>BACKGROUND<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Fever of unknown origin (FUO) in pediatric patients remains a persistent diagnostic challenge, despite advances in imaging and laboratory techniques. Although positron emission tomography\/computed tomography (PET\/CT) has demonstrated substantial diagnostic value in adult populations, its utility in pediatric FUO is less clearly defined. This study aimed to assess the contribution of PET\/CT to the diagnosis of FUO in hospitalized children and identify predictive clinical and laboratory factors for its diagnostic utility.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>METHODS<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This retrospective cohort study reviewed medical records of pediatric patients (aged 0\u201318\u00a0years) diagnosed with FUO who underwent fluorodeoxyglucose PET\/CT imaging between 2010 and 2022, at 3 medical centers in Israel. Clinical presentations, laboratory findings, and final diagnoses were compared between cases where PET\/CT contributed to diagnosis or did not.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>RESULTS<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A total of 112 patients were included. PET\/CT contributed to diagnosis in 51 (45.5%) cases. Among these, infectious etiologies predominated (54.9%). In contrast, among noncontributory PET\/CT cases, rheumatologic diseases were more common (66.6%). Factors associated with higher diagnostic yield included immunodeficiency, low hemoglobin, elevated lactate dehydrogenase, and low serum albumin. Conversely, presence of rash or arthritis was more common in nondiagnostic cases. PET\/CT influenced treatment decisions in 40 (35.7%) patients. No significant differences in inflammatory markers levels (C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, ferritin) were observed between the groups.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>CONCLUSIONS<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>PET\/CT demonstrates a substantial diagnostic yield in pediatric FUO, particularly when certain predictive clinical and laboratory factors are present. It may represent a useful tool in the evaluation of unresolved cases after conventional investigations had failed to identify the cause of fever.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1542\/peds.2025-074944","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,19]],"date-time":"2026-05-19T00:02:57Z","timestamp":1779148977000},"source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["PET\/CT as a Diagnostic Tool in Pediatric Fever of Unknown Origin: A Multicenter Study"],"prefix":"10.1542","volume":"157","author":[{"given":"Neta","family":"Berlak","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"1Pediatric B, Schneider Children\u2019s Medical Center of Israel, Petah Tikva, Israel"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Hanna","family":"Bernstine","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"2Department of Nuclear Medicine Rabin Medical Center, Petah Tikva, Israel"},{"name":"3Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel Aviv University"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Lydia","family":"Christodoulou","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"4Paediatric Rheumatology unit, Edmond and Lily Safra Children\u2019s Hospital, Sheba Medical Center, Ramat Gan, Israel"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Oded","family":"Scheuerman","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"1Pediatric B, Schneider Children\u2019s Medical Center of Israel, Petah Tikva, Israel"},{"name":"3Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel Aviv University"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Alon","family":"Kalter","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"1Pediatric B, Schneider Children\u2019s Medical Center of Israel, Petah Tikva, Israel"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Amit","family":"Carmi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"1Pediatric B, Schneider Children\u2019s Medical Center of Israel, Petah Tikva, Israel"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ester","family":"Forer","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"5Pediatric Ambulatory Day Unit, Soroka Medical Center, Beer Sheva, Israel"},{"name":"6Maccabi Health Services, Beer Sheva, Israel"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Irit","family":"Tirosh","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"3Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel Aviv University"},{"name":"4Paediatric Rheumatology unit, Edmond and Lily Safra Children\u2019s Hospital, Sheba Medical Center, Ramat Gan, Israel"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Lotem","family":"Goldberg","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"1Pediatric B, Schneider Children\u2019s Medical Center of Israel, Petah Tikva, Israel"},{"name":"3Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel Aviv University"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Vered Shkalim","family":"Zemer","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"3Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel Aviv University"},{"name":"7Clalit Health Services, Petach Tikva, Israel"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Eyal","family":"Kristal","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"5Pediatric Ambulatory Day Unit, Soroka Medical Center, Beer Sheva, Israel"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yoel","family":"Levinsky","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"1Pediatric B, Schneider Children\u2019s Medical Center of Israel, Petah Tikva, Israel"},{"name":"3Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel Aviv University"},{"name":"8Pediatric Rheumatology Unit, Schneider Children\u2019s Medical Center of Israel, Petach Tikva, 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