High-Flow Nasal Cannula Practice Patterns Reported by Neonatologists and Neonatal Nurse Practitioners in the United...

High-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) is widely used to treat neonatal respiratory conditions. Significant evidence emerged in recent years to guide practice, yet current practice patterns and their alignment with the evidence remain unknown.

To examine current HFNC practice patterns and availability of clinical practice guidelines used in neonatal intensive care units in the United States.

A nonexperimental, descriptive study was designed using a web-based survey to elicit a convenience sample of US neonatal providers. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, χ tests were used to test for differences among the categories, and post hoc comparisons among each combination of categories were conducted using a Bonferroni-corrected α of .05 to determine significance as appropriate.

A total of 947 responses were analyzed (626 neonatologists and 321 neonatal nurse practitioners). Univariate analyses suggested wide variations in practice patterns. One-third of the respondents used clinical guidelines, the majority utilized HFNC devices in conjunction with nasal continuous positive airway pressure, more than two-thirds used HFNC as a primary respiratory support treatment, and among all respondents, significant differences related to HFNC device types were reported.

US providers revealed wide practice variations related to HFNC therapy. In addition, type of device used appears to impact practice patterns and approaches. Use of standardized guidelines was reported by one third of the respondents, and as such may be the contributing factor for wide practice variations.

Future Research is needed to target aspects of practice where practice variations exist, or practice is not supported by evidence. Significant practice differences related to the device types should be considered in future research design.