Regardless of its origin, any condition associated with inflammation is accompanied by an increase in serum C-reactive protein levels. This study compared the results of a rapid test for the bedside assay of C-reactive protein (QuikRead CRP, Orion Corporation, Orion Diagnostica, Espoo, Finland) with those of a standard laboratory assay in samples taken from 231 children aged less than 14 years (126 males; median age 4.7 years) attending the Emergency Department of Milan University's Institute of Pediatrics because of acute respiratory infection. The two methods showed similar median C-reactive protein levels (standard laboratory assay: 34.7 mg/L, range 4-199 mg/L; QuikRead CRP: 33.3 mg/L, range <8-196 mg/L; p = 0.779) and a similar distribution of children with C-reactive protein levels of <20 mg/L, 20-70 mg/L and >70 mg/L. This study shows for the first time that the rapid QuikRead CRP test can be performed at the bedside or in an outpatient clinic and, in less than 5 min, gives the same quantitative results as those obtained using a more complex routine laboratory method.