| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
Guest Access | Sign In via User Name/Password
|
|
|
|||||||
Guest Access | Sign In via User Name/Password |
|||||||||
* From the Departamento de Emergencia (Dr. G. Rodrigo), Hospital Central de las Fuerzas Armadas, Montevideo, Uruguay; Unidad de Cuidado Intensivo (Dr. C. Rodrigo), Asociación Española 1a de Socorros Mutuos, Montevideo, Uruguay; Department of Emergency Medicine (Dr. Pollack), Pennsylvania Hospital, Philadelphia, PA; and Division of Emergency Medicine (Dr. Rowe), University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Correspondence to: Gustavo J. Rodrigo, MD, Departamento de Emergencia, Hospital Central de las Fuerzas Armadas, Av. 8 de Octubre 3020, Montevideo 11600, Uruguay; e-mail: gurodrig{at}adinet.com.uy.
Study objective: To determine the effect of the addition of heliox to standard medical care on the course of acute asthma.
Design: Systematic review of randomized and nonrandomized prospective, controlled trials of children and adults that compared heliox to placebo when used in conjunction with other standard acute treatments.
Main outcome measures: Pulmonary function tests, hospital admissions, physiologic measures, side effects, and clinical outcomes.
Results: Seven trials were selected for inclusion, with a total of 392 patients with acute asthma. Six studies involved adults, and one study dealt solely with children. The main outcome variable was spirometric measurements (peak expiratory flow or FEV1) in six trials. Two studies evaluated the effect of heliox on airways resistance. No significant differences were demonstrated between heliox or oxygen/air groups (standardized mean difference [SMD], - 0.20; 95% confidence interval [CI], - 0.91 to 0.51; p = 0.6). However, the four studies that used heliox to deliver nebulized therapy showed a nonsignificant increase in pulmonary function (SMD, - 0.21; 95% CI, - 0.43 to 0.01; p = 0.06). In two studies of the same subgroup, heliox mixtures produced a significantly greater increase of heart rate than oxygen/air (weighted mean difference, 9.0; 95% CI, 1.27 to 16.8; p = 0.02). However, the four studies that used heliox to deliver nebulized therapy reported a nonsignificant difference in hospital admissions (odds ratio, 1.07; 95% CI, 0.46 to 2.48; p = 0.9). Overall, heliox appears to be safe and well tolerated.
Conclusions: The existing evidence does not provide support for the administration of helium-oxygen mixtures to emergency department patients with moderate-to-severe acute asthma. However, these conclusions are based on between-group comparisons and small studies, and these results should be interpreted with caution.
Key Words: acute asthma • emergency treatment • heliox • helium • oxygen • status asthmaticus
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  S. Dhuper, S. Choksi, S. Selvaraj, G. Jha, A. Ahmed, H. Babbar, B. Walia, A. Chandra, V. Chung, and C. Shim Room Air Entrainment During {beta}-Agonist Delivery With Heliox. Chest, October 1, 2006; 130(4): 1063 - 1071. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
G. Cambonie, C. Milesi, S. Fournier-Favre, F. Counil, S. Jaber, J.-C. Picaud, and S. Matecki Clinical Effects of Heliox Administration for Acute Bronchiolitis in Young Infants Chest, March 1, 2006; 129(3): 676 - 682. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 Part 10.5: Near-Fatal Asthma Circulation, December 13, 2005; 112(24_suppl): IV-139 - IV-142. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 E. R. McFadden Jr. Acute Severe Asthma Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., October 1, 2003; 168(7): 740 - 759. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
