39·0°C versus 38·5°C ear temperature as fever limit in children with neutropenia undergoing chemotherapy for cancer: a multicentre, cluster-randomised, multiple-crossover, non-inferiority trial

BACKGROUND Fever in neutropenia is the most frequent complication of chemotherapy for cancer. The temperature limit defining fever used clinically varies. A higher limit can avoid unnecessary diagnoses in patients spontaneously recovering from fever. This trial primarily aimed to determine if a limit of 39·0°C ear temperature is non-inferior to 38·5°C regarding safety. METHODS This cluster-randomised, multiple crossover, non-blinded, non-inferiority trial was done in six Swiss Paediatric Oncology Group centres (clusters) in Switzerland. Patients (aged 1 to