Chronic tracheostomy care of ventilator-dependent and -independent children: Clinical practice patterns of pediatric respirologists in a publicly funded (Canadian) healthcare system.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the current clinical practice patterns of Canadian pediatric respirologists at pediatric tertiary care institutions regarding chronic tracheostomy tube care and management of home invasive ventilation. METHODS: A pediatric respirologist/pediatrician with expertise in tracheostomy tube care and home ventilation was identified at each Canadian pediatric tertiary care center to complete a 59-item survey of multiple choice and short answer questions. Domains assessed included tracheostomy tube care, caregiver competency and home monitoring, speaking valves, medical management of tracheostomy complications, decannulation, and long-term follow-up. RESULTS: The response rate was 100% (17/17) with all Canadian tertiary care pediatric centers represented and heterogeneity of practice was observed in all domains assessed. For example, though most centers employ Bivona™ (17/17) and Shiley™ (15/17) tracheostomy tubes, variability was observed around tube change, re-use, and cleaning practices. Most centers require two trained caregivers (14/17) and recommend 24/7 eyes on care and oxygen saturation monitoring. Discharge with an emergency tracheostomy kit was universal (17/17). Considerable heterogeneity was observed in the timing and use of speaking valves and speech-language assessment. Inhaled anti-pseudomonal antibiotics are employed by most centers (16/17) though the indication, agent, and protocol varied by center. Though decannulation practices varied considerably, the requirement of upper airway patency was universally required to proceed with decannulation (17/17) independent of ongoing ventilatory support requirements. CONCLUSION: Considerable variability in pediatric tracheostomy tube care practice exists across Canada. These results will serve as a starting point to standardize and evaluate tracheostomy tube care nationally.

Polysomnography parameters as predictors of respiratory adverse events following adenotonsillectomy in children.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: The first-line treatment of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome in children is adenotonsillectomy, but this may result in perioperative respiratory adverse events (PRAEs). The primary aim of this study is to examine whether the McGill oximetry score (MOS) and other polysomnography parameters can predict major PRAEs following adenotonsillectomy. We secondarily evaluated the MOS interrater reliability and correlation with other polysomnography parameters. METHODS: This retrospective study included all children aged 0-18 years who underwent preoperative polysomnography between June 2010 and January 2016 prior to adenotonsillectomy at a tertiary pediatric institution. Oximetries from polysomnograms were assigned an MOS. Univariable and multivariable models for prediction of major PRAEs were constructed. MOS was correlated with polysomnography parameters and interrater reliability was evaluated. RESULTS: This study included 106 children; 15 had a major PRAE. A multivariable prediction model that combined MOS and age showed evidence for the ability to predict major PRAEs with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.68 (95% confidence interval: 0.52, 0.84), whereby increased MOS and younger age were associated with PRAEs, but apnea-hypopnea index was not. MOS had excellent interrater reliability (κ = 0.95) and was highly correlated with oxygen saturation nadir and cumulative time percentage with oxygen saturation less than 90%. CONCLUSIONS: A prediction model including MOS and age may predict PRAEs following adenotonsillectomy. This suggests that nocturnal oximetry provides the most essential information of polysomnography measures to direct postoperative monitoring following adenotonsillectomy. CITATION: Xiao L, Barrowman N, Momoli F, et al. Polysomnography parameters as predictors of respiratory adverse events following adenotonsillectomy in children. J Clin Sleep Med. 2021;17(11):2215-2223.

Predictive factors for a shortened methacholine challenge protocol in children.

RATIONALE: Although the methacholine challenge test is useful in the diagnosis of asthma, it is time-consuming in children. While protocols that quadruple methacholine concentrations are widely used in adults to shorten testing time, this has not been evaluated in children. Studies have not identified predictors associated with the safe use of a quadrupled concentration protocol. OBJECTIVES: To identify clinical predictors associated with the preclusion of a quadrupled concentration protocol in children. METHODS: We included subjects <18 years who performed a methacholine challenge tests between April 2016 to February 2017 (derivation cohort) and March 2017 to September 2017 (validation cohort). We determined the eligibility of a subject to omit the 0.5 mg/ml and 2.0 mg/ml concentrations based on their PC20 and identified baseline characteristics that are associated with the preclusion of the quadrupled protocol using bivariate analysis. The derived algorithm was applied to the validation cohort. RESULTS: We included 399 and 195 patients in the derivation and validation cohorts, respectively. A baseline FEV1 ≤90% predicted, FEV1/FVC ≤0.8, FEF25-75 ≤70% predicted, and a decrease in FEV1 ≥10% with the previous concentration significantly precluded the omission of the 0.5 mg/ml concentration. A baseline FEF25-75 ≤70% predicted and a drop in FEV1 ≥10% with the previous concentration significantly precluded the omission of the 2.0 mg/ml concentration. Applying these 4 criteria to the validation cohort resulted in an overall sensitivity and specificity of 74.0% and 84.6%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: We identified objective pulmonary function measures that may personalize and shorten the methacholine challenge protocol in children by quadrupling concentrations.