Paediatric LOs Flashcards
Asthma
How common is it in children
Explain the pathophysiology (5)
Most common respiratopry illness in children
- IgE type 1 hypersensitivity reaction against foreign proteins detected as antigens
- Th2, eosinophils, mast cells and CD4+ neutrophils form inflammatory infiltrate in the airway epithelium and smooth muscle, leading to airway remodeling (i.e. desquamation, subepithelial fibrosis, angiogenesis, smooth muscle hypertrophy).
- Hypertrophy of airways causes narrowing of lumen and hyperreactivity
- Loss of bronchoconstriction factors (e.g., prostaglandin E2)
How to most patients overcompensate for acute asthma?
resp/ met alkalosis/ acidosis?
if untreated leads to what failure
- hyperventilation
- Resp and metabolic acidosis- CO2 can’t be blown off + increased lactic acid production by respiratory muscles due to prolonged and increased work of breathing, tissue hypoxia secondary to reduced cardiac output and ventilation-perfusion mismatch
- cardiac and respiratpry failure
Assessment of asthma (4)
- Clinical evaluation- history and physical respiratory examination
- Confirmation via pulmonary function testing- stop bronchodilators before test. Spirometry is then done before and after inhaling a SABA bronchodilator. (Signs of airflow limitation prior- low FEV1 and reduced FEV1/FVC ratio) improvement by 12% shows reversibility
- Exclude other possible causes of wheeze- e.g., via volume-flow loop to remove vocal chord dysfucntion
- Provocative testing
Short term treatment of asthma (5)
- Control of triggers- e.g., exposure to dog dander, change job, don’t run on cold mornings
- Drug therapy- bronchodilators (B2-agonists, Anticholinergics), corticosteroids, leukotriene modifiers, mast cell stabilizers, methylxanthines, immunomodulators
- Monitoring
- Patient education
- Treatment of acute exacerbations-relieve symptoms and return patient’s lung function. Use inhaled bronchodilators (B2 agonists and anticholinergics)
Long term management of asthma (2)
- stepwise increase of medication until appropriate control is found (patient adherence to previous stage is crucial before moving on)
- address comorbid factors like obesity
How long does a reliever last?
how many puffs are you allowed per 4 hours?
lasts 2-4 hours
up to 10 puffs per 4 hours
- Stridor is stypically what kind of breath sound?
- it indicates airflow obstruction where?
- obstruction may be due to?
- Insipiratory breath sound
- due to partial obstruction of the upper airway
- in the lumen (foreign. body), in the wall (e.g., tumour or cord palsy) or extrinsic (e.g., goitre)
What is bronchiectasis?
main symptoms
- Chronic inflammation of the bronchi and bronchioles leasind to permanent dilatation and thinning of these airways
- persistent cough, copious purulent sputum, haemoptysis
- What is bronchiolitis
- what is the most common causative agent
- what are the initial symptoms
- what symptoms follow
- symptomatically worst after how many days of infection
- paediatric condition that results in inflammation of the bronchioles
- RSV in 80% of cases (respiratory syncytial virus)
- coryzal (nasal discharge, nasal obstruction, sneezing, sore throat, general malaise and cough)
- dry cough, increased breathlessness
- 4-5 days
How would you diagnose bronchiolitis
Clinical diagnosis:
- Winter months
- Initial coryza, then cough and breathlessness
- Subcostal and intercostal recessions as they struggle to breathe
- hyperinflation of the chest
- fine end respiratory crackles
Pulse oximetry
Other features include:
- wheeze (episodes of apnoea) expiratory>inspiratory
- Liver displaced downwards
- resultant feeding difficulties due to respiratory distress
- encephalopathy due to hyponatraemia
Signs to suggest differential diagnosis
- High grade, persistemt fever: bacterial pneumonia
- Associated lactic acidosis, hepatomegaly or persistemt tachycardia: suggets possible decompensation of cardiac disease
Investigations for bronchiolitis
- SpO2
- CXR- if other disease suspected. In bronchiolitis, expect signs of hyperinflation, atelectasis (partioal or complete collapse of lobe/ lung) and consolidation
- ABG- CO2 retention sign of late stage
- Nasopharyngeal aspirate or throat swab- looking for viral cause
Admit to hospital for bronchiolitis if any of the following (4)
- Apnoea
- Peristent oxygen sat of (50-75%)
- Inadequate oral fluid intake
- Severe respiratory distress (grunting, marked chest recessions, resp rate over 70/min)
Other causes of bronchiolitis include:
- Viruses: parainfluenza, influenza, adenovirus, rhinovirus
- Chlamydia
- M. pneumoniea
bronchiolitis typically affects children aged
should stop by age
3-6 months
2 years
Hospital treatment of bronchiolitis (6)
Mainly supportive and will resolve itself in 2 weeks
- O2 to achieve Sp02 of >92%
- If significant resp distress—– NGT feeding
- bronchodilators for wheeze
- mucolytic therapy
- non-invasice therapy- CPAP and humidified high flow nasal cannula
- antiviral therapy e.g., oseltamavir
prophylaxis for bronchiolitis:
palivuzimab monoclonal antibody
Causes of acute respiratory distress (9)
- Bronchiolitis
- Viral episodic wheeze
- Pneumonia
- Heart failure
- Foreign body
- Anaphylaxis
- Pneumothorax or pleural effusion
- Metabolic acidosis
- Severe anaemia
- Croup is also known as
- what is croup
- commonly caused by which 3 organisms
- peak incidence age is
- affects which ages
- which season is it most common in
- viral laryngotracheobronchitis
- croup is a mucosal inflammation affecting anywhere from the nose to lower respiratory airways
- parainfluenza, rhinovirus and RSV
- 2 years old
- 6 months- 6 years old
the typical features of croup are:
2 initial-
followed by (5) -
coryza and fever
followed by:
- hoarseness (inflammation of the coal cords)
- barking cough (tracheal oedema and collapse)
- harsh stridor
- variable difficulty of breathing w chest recessions
- symtpoms starting and being worse at night
treatment of croup
- airway protection- do not startle child. let otolaryngologist and anaesthetist know emergency airway support may be needed
- treat at home unless recessions, stridor at rest
- steroids- PO dexamthosone or nebulised budesonide
- nebulized adrenaline- transient relief of symptoms
differentiating between viral croup and acute epiglotitis
Croup*** ***Epiglottitis
Time course. Days. Hours
Prodrome. Coryza. None
Cough. Barking. slight iof any
Feeding. Can drink No
Mouth. Closed Drooling saliva
Fever. <38.5. >
Pneumonia
at what ages does pneuemonia incidence peak
most common newborn cause
infant and young child
children over 5
all ages
extremens of age- young and old
- group B strep
- RSV and other resp viruses
- mycoplasma pneumoniae
- mycobacterium tuberculosis at all ages should be considered
Diagnosis of pneumonia
Symptomatic- presence of
- Cough w increasing sputum production
- Dyspnoea
- Pleuritic chest pain
- Rigors or night sweats
- Myalgia
- malaise
- anorexia
- lethargy

