Nebulized Hypertonic Saline in the Treatment of Viral Bronchiolitis in Infants
Received 17 August 2006; received in revised form 7 March 2007; accepted 9 April 2007. published online 05 July 2007.
Refers to article:
Acute Viral Bronchiolitis: To Treat or Not to Treat—That Is the Question
Claudia Calogero, Peter D. Sly
The Journal of Pediatrics
September 2007 (Vol. 151, Issue 3, Pages 235-237) Full Text |
Full-Text PDF (78 KB)
Objective
To investigate the use of nebulized 3% hypertonic saline (HS) for treating viral bronchiolitis in moderately ill hospitalized infants by a prospective, randomized, double-blinded, controlled, multicenter trial.
Study design
A total of 96 infants (mean age, 4.7 months; range, 0.3 to 18 months) admitted to the hospital for treatment of viral bronchiolitis were recruited from 3 regional pediatric centers over 3 bronchiolitis seasons (December 2003 to May 2006). Patients were randomized to receive, in a double-blind fashion, repeated doses of nebulized 3% HS (treatment group) or 0.9% normal saline (NS; control group), in addition to routine therapy ordered by the attending physician. The principal outcome measure was hospital length of stay (LOS).
Results
On an intention-to-treat basis, the infants in the HS group had a clinically relevant 26% reduction in LOS to 2.6 ± 1.9 days, compared with 3.5 ± 2.9 days in the NS group (P = .05). The treatment was well tolerated, with no adverse effects attributable to the use of HS.
Conclusions
The use of nebulized 3% HS is a safe, inexpensive, and effective treatment for infants hospitalized with moderately severe viral bronchiolitis.
aDepartment of Paediatrics, Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
bDepartment of Paediatrics, University of British Columbia, Victoria General Hospital, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
cDepartment of Paediatrics, Queen’s University, Kingston General Hospital, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
dClinical Research Unit, Kingston General Hospital, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
Reprint requests: Brian A. Kuzik, MD, MSc, FRCP(C), Department of Paediatrics, Royal Victoria Hospital of Barrie, 208-1 Quarry Ridge Road, Barrie, Ontario, Canada L4M 6M2.
Supported by the Queen Alexandra Foundation for Children, British Columbia, Canada; Vancouver Island Health Authority, Youth and Maternal Programme, British Columbia, Canada; and an Ontario Thoracic Society block term grant.
No reprint requests are available from the authors.
ABSTRACT