In early childhood intussusception a characteristic gas pattern is often visible on plain radiographs which can be used for diagnosis. To test this hypothesis, radiographs of 163 children with intussusception, and as many controls, were reviewed. By using multivariable analysis, it appeared that five out of seven parameters (reduced amount of gas in the jejunum; lateralization of the ileum; indiscernible caecum; reduced amount of feces in the colon; and visibility of the intussusceptum) had discriminatory value. For each parameter a weighting (in points) was derived and the patients were classified: the higher the score the more likely that an intussusception was present. A sensitivity of 90% and a specificity of 90% were obtained.