• J Mayordomo-Colunga, A Medina, C Rey, A Concha, M Los Arcos, and S Menéndez.
• Paediatric Intensive Care Unit, Department of Paediatrics, Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias, University of Oviedo, Oviedo, Asturias, Spain. jmcolunga@hotmail.com
• Acta Paediatr. 2010 Feb 1;99(2):308-11.

AimThe objective of this study was to check the feasibility and efficacy of helmet-delivered heliox-continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) in infants with bronchiolitis.MethodsChildren <3 months of age diagnosed with respiratory syncytial virus bronchiolitis and recurrent apnoeas or a venous PCO(2) >55 mmHg or a transcutaneous oxygen saturation <92% in room air were eligible for inclusion in the study. CPAP was delivered by a noninvasive ventilator connected to a heliox port. The interface was a helmet.ResultsEight consecutive infants fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Apnoeas were present in six children before respiratory support was started; they disappeared in five of them. Two infants had to be changed to pressure support noninvasive ventilation, and one of them required intubation. No side effects were recorded.ConclusionWe propose a relatively new device to deliver heliox-CPAP in small infants with bronchiolitis. Although this is just a descriptive study with a short sample, this system seems to be feasible and effective.

17 keywords...

hide…