Box 3.

Red-flag symptoms for a limping child

Symptom	Potential cause
Pain waking the child at night	Malignancy
Signs of redness, swelling, or stiffness of the joint or limb	Infection or inflammatory joint disease
Weight loss, anorexia, fever, night sweats, or fatigue	Malignancy, infection, or inflammation
Unexplained rash or bruising	Haematological or inflammatory joint disease, or non-accidental injury
Limp and stiffness worse in the morning	Inflammatory joint disease
Severe pain, anxiety, and agitation after a traumatic injury	An evolving compartment syndrome