Vital Signs in Children

Topic Overview

What are vital signs?

Vital signs include heart rate, respiration (breathing rate), blood pressure, and temperature. Knowing the ranges for vital signs for your child can help you notice problems early or relieve concerns you may have about how your child is doing. The table below includes information that can help.

Normal ranges for vital signs
Vital Sign	Infant	Child	Pre-Teen/Teen
	0 to 12 months	1 to 11 years	12 and up
Heart rate	100 to 160 beats per minute (bpm)	70 to 120 bpm	60 to 100 bpm
Respiration (breaths)	0 to 6 months 30 to 60 breaths per minute (bpm) 6 to 12 months 24 to 30 bpm	1 to 5 years 20 to 30 (bpm) 6 to 11 years 12 to 20 bpm	12 to 18 bpm ^{footnote 1}
Blood pressure ( systolic/ diastolic) ^{footnote 1}	0 to 6 months 65 to 90/45 to 65 millimetres of mercury (mm Hg) 6 to 12 months 80 to 100/55 to 65 mm Hg	90 to 110/55 to 75 mm Hg	110 to 135/65 to 85 mm Hg
Temperature ^{footnote 2}	All ages
	Rectal (bum)	36.6 C to 38 C (97.9 F to 100.4 F)
	Ear	35.8 C to 38 C (96.4 F to 100.4 F)
	Oral (mouth)	35.5 C to 37.5 C (95.9 F to 99.5 F)
	Axillary (armpit)	36.5 C to 37.5 C (97.8 F to 99.5 F)

Learn more

Learn more about how to take your child's temperature, take a pulse, measure blood pressure, and count breaths with these topics:

Body Temperature
Rectal, Ear, and Oral Temperature Comparison
Pulse Measurement
Counting Respiration Rates
Checking Blood Pressure at Home

References

Citations

Harman M, et al. (2011). Pediatric emergency and resuscitation. In RM Kliegman et al., eds., Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics, 19th ed., p. 280. Philadelphia: Saunders Elsevier.

Leduc D, et al. (2000, reaffirmed 2013). Temperature measurement in paediatrics. Canadian Paediatric Society Position Statement. Available online: http://www.cps.ca/en/documents/position/temperature-measurement.