Information: Comparison of clinical features in mild/moderate dehydration and hypovolaemic shock in severe dehydration

Assessing dehydration accurately at the bedside is difficult, but clinical signs of shock warn of severe illness. Frequent review is required to anticipate deterioration.

	Dehydration	Shock
Symptoms	Irritable/lethargic	Decreased consciousness
Signs	Skin colour unchanged	Pale or mottled skin
	Warm extremities	Cold extremities
	Normal peripheral pulses	Weak peripheral pulses
Observations	Normal capillary return	Delayed capillary return (>2 seconds)
Observations	Normal blood pressure	Low blood pressure (pre-morbid sign)