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Heliox for croup in children
Christiane Vorwerk1, Tim Coats
1Department of Emergency Medicine, Leicester Royal Infirmary, Infirmary Square, Leicester, UK, LE1 5WW.
The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
|February 19, 2010
Summary
Helium-oxygen (heliox) therapy shows no significant difference in improving croup symptoms compared to other treatments. More high-quality research is needed to determine heliox
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Emergency Medicine
- Respiratory Medicine
- Critical Care
Background:
- Croup is a common viral illness in young children, causing upper airway inflammation and respiratory distress.
- Corticosteroids are standard treatment but have a delayed effect, leaving children at risk of respiratory failure.
- Helium-oxygen (heliox) therapy is used for upper airway obstruction, but its efficacy in croup is uncertain.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effectiveness of heliox in alleviating croup symptoms and distress in children.
- To compare heliox treatment with placebo or other active interventions using croup scores and clinical assessments.
Main Methods:
- Searched major databases (CENTRAL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL) for relevant studies up to June 2009.
- Included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and quasi-RCTs comparing heliox with placebo or active treatments in children with croup.
- Assessed study quality for risk of bias and analyzed data using mean differences for continuous outcomes.
Main Results:
- Two RCTs with 44 children were included; neither compared heliox to placebo.
- One study compared heliox to 30% humidified oxygen; the other compared it to 100% oxygen with epinephrine.
- No significant difference in croup score changes was observed between heliox and control groups.
Conclusions:
- There is currently insufficient evidence to support the use of heliox for treating croup in children.
- A well-designed, adequately powered RCT is necessary to determine the potential role of heliox therapy in croup management.
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