Table 1.

 Definitions of clinical signs

	Definition (age to which it applies)
Prostrate	Inability to sit unassisted (⩾1 year); inability to drink or breast feed (<1 year)
Impaired consciousness	Inability to localise a painful stimulus (>8 months); non-directed eye movements (⩽8 months)
Raised respiratory rate	>50/min (<12 months); >40/min (⩾1 year)
Subcostal recession	Indrawing of lower chest wall*
Severe anaemia	Haemoglobin concentration <50 g/l
History of diarrhoea	⩾3 episodes in 24 hours
Hyperthermia	Axillary temperature >39°C
Hypothermia	Axillary temperature <36°C
Wasting	WAZ <−3†

^*Differentiated from deep breathing (Kussmaul's respiration). 

^† Weight for age (WAZ) and height for age (HAZ) z scores calculated with reference data from American National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). Scores <−3 indicate severe wasting.