December’s Paediatric Pearls (GP edition) reminds us all of the NICE guideline on antibiotic prescribing in respiratory tract infections.  I would like to do a bit more of the “delayed prescribing” in the Emergency Department but it would require either the family coming back (ie. a “no antibiotic” policy really) or their putting a bottle of amoxicillin in their fridge and potentially not using it as we give out the actual antibiotic in A and E, not prescriptions.  We’ve also featured a couple of papers showing that chest x-rays add very little to the management of a child with a respiratory illness which I think most GPs know but it doesn’t harm to remind trainees still in the hospital that, just because the radiology department is at the end of the corridor, it doesn’t mean you have to use it!  We continue our 6-8 week baby check series with information on sacral dimples and I have also put in a couple of websites with sensible, empathetic information and advice on school refusal.  The beginning of term is stressful for children who find it hard to go to school and parents may find these sites helpful when trying to understand why their child is behaving in that way.  Happy New Year to you all!