Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2010 Jan;66(1):9-13.
doi: 10.1016/S0377-1237(10)80083-8. Epub 2011 Jul 21.

Comparision of Nebulised Salbutamol and L-epinephrine in First Time Wheezy Children

B M John  1 , D Singh  2
Affiliations

Comparision of Nebulised Salbutamol and L-epinephrine in First Time Wheezy Children

B M John et al. Med J Armed Forces India. 2010 Jan.

Abstract

Background: Salbutamol is the standard recommendation in bronchial asthma. However, the use of bronchodilators in wheeze associated respiratory infections including bronchiolitis continues to be controversial. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of nebulised salbutamol versus epinephrine in 'first time' wheezy children using clinical parameters and airway resistance.

Methods: Sixty children between two months to 60 months were recruited, 30 in each treatment group. Children received periodic (0, 20, 40 minutes) doses of either salbutamol (0.15mg/kg with 3ml saline subject to a minimum of 2.5mg) or laevo- epinephrine (1:1000, 0.5ml/kg subject to a max of 2.5ml with 3ml saline) via nebuliser along with oxygen. Changes in heart rate (HR), oxygen saturation (SpO2), respiratory rate (RR) and respiratory distress assessment instrument (RDAI) were assessed along with measurement of airway resistance using interrupter method (Hand held spirometer-Microloop with MicroRint module).

Result: The respiratory status was better in the epinephrine group with significant improvement in RR, RDAI score, SpO2 and fall of airway resistance. There were no significant side effects noted in either group.

Conclusion: Nebulised epinephrine is a useful and safe drug for wheezy children and is superior to salbutamol. This needs validation by large multicentric randomized blinded studies.

Keywords: Epinephrine; Nebulised bronchodilators; Salbutamol; Wheezy children.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Trend of study parameter-Heart Rate (HR)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Trend of study parameter-Respiratory Rate (RR)
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Trend of study parameter-Oxygen Saturation (SpO2)
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Trend of study parameter-Respiratory Distress Assessment Instrument (RDAI)
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Trend of study parameter-Airway Resistance (Rint)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Ray MS, Singh V. Comparison of nebulised adrenaline versus salbutamol in wheeze associated respiratory infection in infants. Indian Paediat. 2002;39:12–22. - PubMed
    1. Glezen WP, Denny FW. Epidemiology of acute lower respiratory disease in children. N Engl J Med. 1973;288:498–505. - PubMed
    1. Wohl ME, Chernick V. State of the art: bronchiolitis. Am Rev Respir Dis. 1978;118:759–781. - PubMed
    1. Soto ME, Sly PD, Uren E, Taussig LM, Landau LI. Bronchodilator response during acute viral bronchiolitis in infancy. Paediatr Pulmonol. 1985;1:85–90. - PubMed
    1. Schindler Margrid. Do bronchodilators have an effect on bronchiolitis? Critical Care. 2002;6:111–112. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources