Comparative Efficacy of Bronchiolitis Interventions in Acute Care: A Network Meta-analysis.

CONTEXT: Uncertainty exists as to which treatments are most effective for bronchiolitis, with considerable practice variation within and across health care sites. OBJECTIVE: A network meta-analysis to compare the effectiveness of common treatments for bronchiolitis in children aged ≤2 years. DATA SOURCES: Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, ClinicalTrials.gov, and the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform were searched from inception to September 1, 2019. STUDY SELECTION: A total 150 randomized controlled trials comparing a placebo or active comparator with any bronchodilator, glucocorticoid steroid, hypertonic saline solution, antibiotic, helium-oxygen therapy, or high-flow oxygen therapy were included. DATA EXTRACTION: Data were extracted by 1 reviewer and independently verified. Primary outcomes were admission rate on day 1 and by day 7 and hospital length of stay. Strength of evidence was assessed by using Confidence in Network Meta-Analysis . RESULTS: Nebulized epinephrine (odds ratio: 0.64, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.44 to 0.93, low confidence) and nebulized hypertonic saline plus salbutamol (odds ratio: 0.44, 95% CI: 0.23 to 0.84, low confidence) reduced the admission rate on day 1. No treatment significantly reduced the admission rate on day 7. Nebulized hypertonic saline (mean difference: -0.64 days, 95% CI: -1.01 to -0.26, low confidence) and nebulized hypertonic saline plus epinephrine (mean difference: -0.91 days, 95% CI: -1.14 to -0.40, low confidence) reduced hospital length of stay. LIMITATIONS: Because we did not report adverse events in this analysis, we cannot make inferences about the safety of these treatments. CONCLUSIONS: Although hypertonic saline alone, or combined with epinephrine, may reduce an infant's stay in the hospital, poor strength of evidence necessitates additional rigorous trials.

Comparative Usability Analysis and Parental Preferences of Three Web-Based Knowledge Translation Tools: Multimethod Study.

BACKGROUND: Connecting parents to research evidence is known to improve health decision making. However, guidance on how to develop effective knowledge translation (KT) tools that synthesize child-health evidence into a form understandable by parents is lacking. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to conduct a comparative usability analysis of three Web-based KT tools to identify differences in tool effectiveness, identify which format parents prefer, and better understand what factors affect usability for parents. METHODS: We evaluated a Cochrane plain language summary (PLS), Blogshot, and a Wikipedia page on a specific child-health topic (acute otitis media). A mixed method approach was used involving a knowledge test, written usability questionnaire, and a semistructured interview. Differences in knowledge and usability questionnaire scores for each of the KT tools were analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis tests, considering a critical significance value of P=.05. Thematic analysis was used to synthesize and identify common parent preferences among the semistructured interviews. Key elements parents wanted in a KT tool were derived through author consensus using questionnaire data and parent interviews. RESULTS: In total, 16 parents (9 female) with a mean age of 39.6 (SD 11.9) years completed the study. Parents preferred the Blogshot over the PLS and Wikipedia page (P=.002) and found the Blogshot to be the most aesthetic (P=.001) and easiest to use (P=.001). Knowledge questions and usability survey data also indicated that the Blogshot was the most preferred and effective KT tool at relaying information about the topic. Four key themes were derived from thematic analysis, describing elements parents valued in KT tools. Parents wanted tools that were (1) simple, (2) quick to access and use, and (3) trustworthy, and which (4) informed how to manage the condition. Out of the three KT tools assessed, Blogshots were the most preferred tool by parents and encompassed these four key elements. CONCLUSIONS: It is important that child health evidence be available in formats accessible and understandable by parents to improve decision making, use of health care resources, and health outcomes. Further usability testing of different KT tools should be conducted involving broader populations and other conditions (eg, acute vs chronic) to generate guidelines to improve KT tools for parents.