Twenty patients presenting to an A&E department with acute severe asthma were studied. Despite clinically severe airway obstruction few had raised catecholamine levels. However several patients with impending respiratory arrest had markedly elevated catecholamine levels, and relationships are demonstrated between these levels and other measures of disease severity.

Children with acute asthma exacerbations frequently present to an emergency department with signs of respiratory distress. The most severe episodes are potentially life-threatening. Effective treatment depends on the accurate and rapid assessment of disease severity at presentation. This statement addresses the assessment, management and disposition of paediatric patients with a known diagnosis...

BACKGROUND Treatment of acute asthma is based on rapid reversal of bronchospasm and arresting airway inflammation. There is some evidence that intravenous magnesium can provide additional bronchodilation when given in conjunction with standard bronchodilating agents and corticosteroids. No systematic review of this literature has been completed on this topic. OBJECTIVES To examine the effect ...

BACKGROUND Little attention has been paid to asthma in 'under-fives' in Sub-Saharan Africa. In 'under-fives', acute asthma and pneumonia have similar clinical presentation and most children with acute respiratory symptoms are diagnosed with pneumonia according to the WHO criteria. The mortality associated with acute respiratory diseases in Uganda is high but improving, dropping from 24% in 2004...

During the period 1973-85 assisted ventilation was used for the treatment of severe asthma on 48 occasions in 18 patients (one patient was ventilated 29 times). On each occasion arterial blood gas abnormalities were restored to normal as quickly as possible irrespective of peak inflation pressures. One patient was thought to be brain dead on transfer from another hospital but was ventilated for...

STUDY OBJECTIVE To assess how patients with respiratory acidosis from acute severe asthma respond to helium-oxygen (heliox) mixtures. DESIGN Consecutive case series. SETTING Urban community teaching hospital. PATIENTS Over a 2-year period, 12 asthmatics (mean age, 33.8 +/- 11.3 years) presented to the emergency department with acute respiratory acidosis (pH < 7.35 and PaCO2 > or = 45 mm H...

PURPOSE Prolonged recovery time of pulmonary function after an asthma exacerbation is a significant burden on asthmatics, and management of these patients needs to be improved. The aim of this study was to evaluate factors associated with a longer recovery time of pulmonary function among asthmatic patients hospitalized due to a severe asthma exacerbation. METHODS We retrospectively reviewed ...

Background: Asthma is the chronic inflammation of airways characterized by eosinophilic infiltration, mucus overproduction, airway hyper-responsiveness and airway remodeling. These changes are induced mostly by cytokines which are produced by T helper (Th) 2 cells. Recently, the role of interleukin-23 (IL-23) in the pathogenesis of adultallergic asthma has been studied. Objective: To explore IL...

OBJECTIVE To review the evidence for the use of intravenous salbutamol, its systemic effects and the potential complications that may occur in patients with severe asthma. DATA SOURCES A review of articles reported on intravenous salbutamol in patients with acute asthma. SUMMARY OF REVIEW Intravenous salbutamol is recommended in the treatment of severe asthma when there is failure to respon...