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Chest physiotherapy for acute bronchiolitis in paediatric patients between 0 and 24 months old

C Perrotta1, Z Ortiz, M Roque

  • 1UCD School of Public Health and Population Sciences, Woodview House, Belfield, Dublin, Ireland, 4. carla.perrotta@ucd.ie

The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
|January 27, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Chest physiotherapy does not improve outcomes for infants with acute bronchiolitis. Studies found no significant differences in hospital stay, oxygen needs, or clinical severity scores for infants receiving chest physiotherapy compared to no intervention.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Respiratory Medicine
  • Critical Care

Background:

  • Acute bronchiolitis is a common winter illness in infants under two years.
  • Chest physiotherapy is traditionally used to aid secretion clearance and reduce breathing effort.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of chest physiotherapy in infants under 24 months with acute bronchiolitis.

Main Methods:

  • Searches of multiple databases (CENTRAL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL) were conducted up to May 2006.
  • Included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing chest physiotherapy to no intervention or other physiotherapy in infants.
  • Primary outcome was clinical severity score; secondary outcomes included hospital stay, oxygen use, and medication needs.

Main Results:

  • Three RCTs met inclusion criteria, all using vibration and percussion techniques.
  • No significant differences were found in clinical severity scores, hospital stay, or oxygen requirements.
  • The study populations were hospitalized infants with acute bronchiolitis, some requiring nutritional support.

Conclusions:

  • Chest physiotherapy with vibration and percussion does not shorten hospital stays or improve clinical scores in non-ventilated infants with acute bronchiolitis.
  • Further research is needed to evaluate forced expiratory techniques in chest physiotherapy for this population.
  • Current evidence does not support the routine use of these specific chest physiotherapy techniques for acute bronchiolitis in infants.
Abstract

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