Table 1.
Hospitalized patients with asthma exacerbation.
| n = 396 | |
|---|---|
| Demographic variables | |
| Age in years, mean and SD | 7.8 ± 2.4 |
| Gender: male | 203 (51.3%) |
| Health system | |
| Public | 292 (73.7%) |
| Private | 104 (26.3%) |
| Number of patients by geographic zones | |
| North | 36 (9.1%) |
| Central | 301 (76.0%) |
| South | 59 (14.9%) |
| Hospitalization rates by geographic zones per 10,000 inhabitants | |
| North | 0.53 |
| Central | 0.95 |
| South | 0.43 |
| Median days of hospital stay | 4 (1–20) |
| Number of patients in PICU by geographic zones | 69 (17.4%) |
| North | 17 (24.6%) |
| Central | 46 (66.7%) |
| South | 6 (8.7%) |
| PICU hospitalization rates by geographic zones per 10,000 inhabitants | |
| North | 0.25 |
| Central | 0.15 |
| South | 0.04 |
| Median length of stay in PICU | 4 (2–5) |
| Oxygen | 394 (99.5%) |
| Median days of supplemental O2 | 3 (1–14) |
| Fraction of Inspired O2 > 50% | 75 (18.9%) |
| Salbutamol | 396 |
| MDI | 353 (89.1%) |
| Intermittent nebulization | 287 (72.5%) |
| Continuous nebulization | 15 (3.8%) |
| Intravenous salbutamol | 11 (2.8%) |
| Systemic corticosteroids | 388 (98.0%) |
| Median days of systemic corticosteroids | 4 (1–20) |
| Intravenous corticosteroids | 295 (74.5%) |
| Oral corticosteroids | 343 (86.6%) |
| Antibiotic | 142 (35.9%) |
| Other medications | |
| Aminophylline | 3 (0.8%) |
| Magnesium sulfate | 24 (6.0%) |
| Ketamine | 2 (0.5%) |
| Respiratory physiotherapy | 316 (79.8%) |
| Median days of physiotherapy | 4 (1–20) |
| Non-invasive ventilation (NIV) | 46 (11.6%) |
| Median days of NIV | 3 (1–8) |
| Invasive ventilation (IV) | 3 (0.8%) |
| Mean days if IV | 7 (5–7) |
| Number of complications recorded | 123 |
| Atelectasis (ATL) | 61 (49.6%) |
| Bronchopneumonia | 51 (41.5%) |
| Pleural effusion | 4 (3.3%) |
| Pneumomediastinum | 3 (2.4%) |
| Pneumothorax | 3 (2.4%) |
| Subcutaneous emphysema | 1 (0.8%) |