Patients who report night sweats

What you need to knowNight sweats are commonly reported, with a broad differential including both benign and life threatening causesA detailed history, including characterising and contextualising the night sweats, and physical examination will help guide probability of certain conditions and help focus testingPatients presenting with night sweats who have high risk signs or symptoms and host factors warrant further work-up, including complete blood count, inflammatory markers, and other testing guided by history and physical examFor patients without concerning or high risk features, re-assessment 2-4 weeks after initial presentation before pursuing laboratory evaluation may be appropriateA 48 year old woman with hypertension presents to her general practitioner reporting night sweats. She has had drenching night sweats every night for the past two weeks and often has to change her shirt in the middle of the night. She also reports she has daily episodes of fever, up to 39°C. Her weight has…
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