For healthcare professionals
Why is this research needed?
Many children and young people have poorly controlled asthma and it is not unusual for them to need hospital admission.
Currently, three intravenous bronchodilators are used to treat acute, severe asthma.
We do not know which of these three medicines represents the optimum approach.
Our aims
- To see which of intravenous aminophylline, magnesium sulfate or salbutamol is most effective at treating acute severe asthma in children and young people.
- To look at how acceptable each treatment is to patients, their families and healthcare professionals.
- To see which treatment gives best value for money to the NHS.
Design and methods
We aim to recruit over 350 children and young people aged between 2 and 18 years from UK hospitals.
Children with acute severe asthma that does not improve with inhaled medications will be recruited.
A deferred consent approach will be used to allow fully informed consent to be obtained once the patient has been stabilised.
Participants will be randomised to aminophylline, magnesium sulfate or salbutamol.
To see which treatment works best, we will look at several results:
- Asthma severity score to assess clinical improvement – this is based on ratings made by clinical staff.
- Length of admission.
- Any side effects of each treatment.
- Acceptability to patients, their families and healthcare professionals.
- Healthcare costs.
Join us
If you are a healthcare professional and would like to be involved in the trial, please contact us here.