Management of Wheezy Preschoolers in the Emergency Department: A Discrete Choice Experiment

This study aimed to elicit pediatric emergency physician's treatment choices for preschool-aged children with wheeze, determine the characteristics of the presenting child that influence treatment choices, and determine whether there is clinical equipoise by eliciting physician willingness to enroll these children in a placebo-controlled trial of corticosteroids.

Discrete choice experiments varying the characteristics of the presenting child were designed to elicit Canadian emergency physician's treatment choices, both in the emergency department (ED) and at discharge, for young children presenting with wheeze and their willingness to enroll in a randomized controlled trial (RCT).

Most physicians chose to treat children with albuterol both in the ED and at discharge for all clinical scenarios. The proportion of physicians who chose to treat children with oral corticosteroids both in the ED and at discharge varied widely (from 12% to 81%) across all scenarios. Physician preference whether preschool children with wheeze should be treated with corticosteroids varied depending on the child's age, history of atopy, and previous and continuous wheeze. Between 73% and 86% of physicians were willing to enroll these children in an RCT indicating clinical equipoise.

Physician treatment choices varied widely indicating clinical equipoise as to the effectiveness of corticosteroids in this population of patients. Management choices with respect to albuterol and corticosteroids were not consistent with published national and international guidelines. In line with this finding, physician's considerable willingness to enroll these children in an RCT may suggest that they are seeking guidance on how to manage these patients.