Hemophilus influenzae cellulitis.

To define the clinical features of cellulitis due to Hemophilus influenzae type B, we reviewed the records of 78 children admitted to the hospital with cellulitis during a one-year period. Fifty-two children were afebrile (T less than 38 degrees C) and none had infections due to H. influenzae. Twenty-six children were febrile, 19 with facial and seven with extremity lesions. H. influenzae type B was recovered from seven of the febrile children with facial cellulitis, and one with extremity involvement. The mean WBC count of children with disease due to this organism was 17,500/mm3. Both fever and a leukocytosis (WBC count greater than 15,000/mm3) occurred more often in children with H. influenzae type B cellulitis than among those with infections due to other organisms.