Periodic fever syndromes refer to diseases that cause periodic (episodic) fever that do not have an infectious (virus/bacteria) cause. Many of these syndromes are hereditary and result from mutation (defect or mistake) in a gene. The syndromes are defined by several factors including:
- Gene defect
- Clinical features of the syndrome
- Parts of the body affected in addition to the fever
- Age of child when syndrome starts
- Ethnicity of the child and parents
Many of these syndromes have a specific treatment, often based on understanding the problem caused by the genetic defect.
