Research Article: Acute paediatric asthma treatment in the prehospital setting: a retrospective observational study
Abstract:
Objectives To describe the incidence of and patterns of ‘escalated care’ (care in addition to standard treatment with systemic corticosteroids and inhaled bronchodilators) for children receiving prehospital treatment for asthma. Design Retrospective observational study. Setting State-wide ambulance service data (Ambulance Victoria in Victoria, Australia, population 6.5?million) Participants Children aged 1–17 years and given a final diagnosis of asthma by the treating paramedics and/or treated with inhaled bronchodilators from 1 July 2019 to 30 June 2020. Primary and secondary outcome measures We classified ‘escalation of care’ as parenteral administration of epinephrine, or provision of respiratory support. We compared clinical, demographic and treatments administered between those receiving and not receiving escalation of care. Results Paramedics attended 1572 children with acute exacerbations of asthma during the 1?year study period. Of these, 22 (1.4%) had escalated care, all receiving parenteral epinephrine. Patients with escalated care were more likely to be older, had previously required hospital admission for asthma and had severe respiratory distress at initial assessment. Of 1307 children with respiratory status data available, at arrival to hospital, the respiratory status of children had improved overall (normal/mild respiratory distress at initial assessment 847 (64.8%), normal/mild respiratory distress at hospital arrival 1142 (87.4%), p<0.0001). Conclusions Most children with acute exacerbations of asthma did not receive escalated therapy during their pre-hospital treatment from ambulance paramedics. Most patients were treated with inhaled bronchodilators only and clinically improved by the time they arrived in hospital.
Introduction:
Asthma is a frequent reason for children to attend the emergency department (ED), 1 2 and one of the most common reasons for paediatric hospitalisation after an ED visit. 3 In the USA, the rate of paediatric ED visits for asthma increased by 13.3% between 2001 and 2010, 4 while in the UK, it is estimated that a child is admitted to hospital with an asthma attack every 20?min. 5 Most children with asthma have mild or moderate exacerbations, and respond to first-line treatment with inhaled bronchodilator therapy and…
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