Use of High Frequency Chest Compression in Pediatric Status Asthmaticus

Not Applicable

Terminated

Conditions: Pediatric, Asthma, Acute Exacerbation, Pediatric ICU

Interventions: Device: High Frequency Chest Compression VEST

Registration Number: NCT00552448

Lead Sponsor: Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center

Brief Summary: Asthma is a disease resulting in mucus hypersecretion and airways obstruction. This causes difficulty breathing. The High Frequency Chest Compressor (HFCC) is a device that has been shown to decrease respiratory complications in individuals with severe disability who are unable to clear airway secretions. There is a lack of studies using this device in children with asthma. The device has been shown in a study to be safe in children with asthma. The investigators propose that using this device in our pediatric patients hospitalized in the pediatric ICU with asthma will result in decreased pediatric ICU stay. The investigators will also look at asthma severity, total days of hospital stay and chest discomfort while on therapy.

Detailed Description: Background: Asthma is the third largest cause of hospitalization in children under 15 years of age. It is a reversible obstructive lung disease caused by airway inflammation and constriction of the airway smooth muscle. Mucus producing glands of the airway become enlarged resulting in overproduction of mucus. All those factors result in airflow obstruction with airtrapping, ventilation/perfusion mismatch and hypoxia. Therapies such as beta-agonists (i.e. albuterol), anti-cholinergics (i.e. atrovent) and steroids are used for an acute asthma attack. Unfortunately, patients may develop status asthmaticus, in which a severe attack does not respond to nebulized bronchodilators, and require intensive care admission.

HFCC is an FDA (1988 under Class II 510K) approved device/modality of chest physiotherapy which has been utilized in patients with mucus hypersecretion, atelectasis and pneumonia. There is a paucity of pediatric studies. A comparative retrospective/prospective data analysis on exacerbations and hospitalizations in medically fragile (profoundly disabled) children using outpatient HFCC showed that use of this therapy reduced days of hospitalization for pulmonary exacerbations. Long term use in quadriplegic children reduced pulmonary secretions, incidence of pneumonia, and number of hospitalizations. In the pediatric cystic fibrosis population, there was improvement of lung function during hospitalization and long term decrease in progression of lung disease. Furthermore, in patients with mild to moderate asthma, there was no decline in lung function with the use of beta agonist and HFCC versus beta agonist alone indicating good tolerance and safety.

Because asthma patients have mucus hypersecretion and this modality has been shown to be effective in other patient populations with mucus hypersecretion, this modality can be used as a means of reducing pulmonary morbidity and thereby allowing the respiratory therapist to allocate his/her time more efficiently.

Purpose:

Assess efficacy of HFCC in PICU population ages 2 to 21 years of age with status asthmaticus

Design: Prospective Randomized non blinded HFCC (administered 4 times a day for 20 minutes) with conventional PICU management of asthma exacerbation vs. conventional PICU management of asthma exacerbation alone. Child would not have any of the standard asthma medications changed or stopped because of this study.

End Points of Interest:

Primary

1) PICU days - Average number of PICU days as researched is about 4.47 days. There may be factors such as non PICU floor availability and PICU rounds that may delay transfer from PICU to the non PICU floor. So the official discharge from PICU will be when the attending PICU physician announces or deems it acceptable for PICU discharge

Secondary

1. Length of hospitalization

2. Pediatric Asthma Severity Score a validated asthma severity score in pediatric population: 1) observed level of respiratory distress 2) accessory muscle use 3) auscultation (degree of wheezing) 4) oxygen saturation 5) respiratory rate Scored observations 0, 1, or 2 and total the observation numbers for a Severity score

3. Discomfort

Patient inclusion 2 to 21 yo (VEST approved for over two yo) Admitted to PICU for status asthmaticus Negative urine pregnancy test prior to initiation of study in those with menses

Patient Exclusion

Absolute contraindication to VEST use:

1. Unstable head or neck injury

2. Active hemorrhage with hemodynamic instability

3. Intracranial pressure \> 20 mmHg or those in whom intracranial pressures should be avoided (was a relative contraindication but after discussion moved to absolute)

Presence of anomalies such as:

1. Former premature infant with BPD

2. Congenital bronchogenic or pulmonary anomaly (i.e. CF)

3. Congenital heart disease

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status: TERMINATED

Sex: All

Target Recruitment: 36

Inclusion Criteria

2 to 21 yo (VEST approved for over two yo) Admitted to PICU for status asthmaticus Negative urine pregnancy test prior to initiation of study in those with menses

Exclusion Criteria

Absolute contraindication to VEST use:
1. Unstable head or neck injury
2. Active hemorrhage with hemodynamic instability
3. Intracranial pressure > 20 mmHg or those in whom intracranial pressures should be avoided (was a relative contraindication but after discussion moved to absolute)

Presence of anomalies such as:

Former premature infant with BPD
Congenital bronchogenic or pulmonary anomaly (i.e. CF)
Congenital heart disease

Study & Design

Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL

Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
1	High Frequency Chest Compression VEST	Use of the HFCC device in addition to standard therapy for status asthmaticus. The use of HFCC will not affect the therapy received

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Hours Spent in Pediatric ICU	Number of hours from admission to discharge from PICU	Length of stay (hours) in Pediatric ICU.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Pediatric Asthma Severity Score (Modified Pulmonary Index Score)	Discharge from PICU	Modified Pulmonary Index Score (MPIS): a validated asthma severity score in pediatric population (Carroll CL et al. A modified pulmonary index score with predictive value for pediatric asthma exacerbations, Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol 2005) Consists of: 1) oxygen saturation on room air 2) accessory muscle use 3) inspiratory to expiratory ratio 4) degree of wheezing 5) heart rate 6) respiratory rate Scored observations 0, 1, 2 or 3. Total score range 0 - 18. Mild exacerbation total less than 6, moderate exacerbation 6 - 10, severe exacerbation higher than 10
Total Days of Hospital Admission	Days	This is limited due to non collection by collaborating centers.
Number of Participants With Chest Discomfort	During PICU admission

Trial Locations

Locations (3): Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
🇺🇸
Lubbock, Texas, United States
Spartanburg Regional Medical Center
🇺🇸
Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States
Stony Brook University Medical Center
🇺🇸
Stony Brook, New York, United States