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Check common dehydration-related symptoms—thirst, dry mouth, urine changes, dizziness, cramps, fatigue, vomiting, diarrhea, racing heart—and see a transparent point total with mild / moderate / severe educational bands. Any confusion or trouble staying awake is treated as a critical prompt for emergency care. This is not a pediatric dehydration percent estimator and not a substitute for examination or labs.
Last updated: April 20, 2026
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Other symptoms right now
Mild pattern (educational)
3 pts
Fewer high-weight symptoms are selected. Mild fluid loss often improves with rest and steady oral fluids. Reassess frequently; seek care if vomiting, fever, pain, or neurologic symptoms develop or worsen.
Children, older adults, pregnancy, heart failure, kidney disease, and diabetes change risk—use lower thresholds for in-person care. Oral rehydration solutions (ORS) follow WHO principles; plain water alone may be insufficient with heavy diarrhea.
Combines intake craving, mucosal dryness, and urine volume/color changes commonly taught as early dehydration signals.
Orthostatic symptoms, resting tachycardia feelings, and altered alertness receive higher weights because they can reflect more significant hemodynamic or metabolic compromise.
Frequent watery stool and inability to retain fluids increase risk and often change management from “sip fluids at home” to in-person evaluation.
When confusion / hard to stay awake is no: total points roughly under 5 → mild; 5–11 → moderate; 12 or more → severe pattern. Any yes to the neurologic question → critical pathway regardless of the total.
Each endorsed symptom adds a fixed number of points reflecting how strongly it is emphasized in common patient-education materials about dehydration and gastroenteritis. The total is not calibrated to percent body water deficit and should not be compared to hospital growth charts or shock indexes.
WHO oral rehydration therapy uses specific glucose and electrolyte concentrations to improve small-intestine sodium absorption during diarrhea. Plain water may be fine for mild thirst but may be insufficient when electrolyte losses are high—follow clinician advice for your situation.
For fluid planning in hospitalized teaching scenarios, see our maintenance fluid calculator and osmolality calculator.
Get a Custom Calculator for Your PlatformStrong thirst (1) plus dry mouth (2), with other symptoms set to no, yields 3 points → mild on this educational scale—often compatible with careful home oral hydration and close monitoring if no red flags.
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