In Infants With Laryngomalacia, Does Acid-Blocking Medication Improve Respiratory Symptoms?

Laryngomalacia, or a soft, floppy upper airway, is the most common cause of noisy breathing in neonates. It is caused by a combination of factors including neuromuscular weakness, cartilaginous inadequacy, and anatomic abnormalities in the voice box. The majority of affected babies' symptoms resolve by one year without intervention, but around 5% of cases require surgical intervention to treat failure to thrive or obstructive sleep apnea. Many babies with laryngomalacia are treated empirically with H2 blockers such as ranitidine or famotidine to prevent reflux of stomach acid from causing further inflammation in an already compromised upper airway. However, to date no study has been performed to show a definitive benefit of these medications. The investigators hope to determine whether H2 blockers such as ranitidine and famotidine improve airway symptoms in babies with laryngomalacia. This will have an effect on practice guideline for one of the most common problems encountered in pediatric otolaryngology. All neonates, ages 0 to 4 months, presenting to LPCH pediatric ENT clinic for airway difficulties or stridor will be screened for inclusion. As is consistent with an acceptable standard of medical care, these children will undergo a flexible nasal endoscopic exam to make the diagnosis of laryngomalacia, as well as be weighed and a breastfeeding history taken. If laryngomalacia is present, the study staff with then administer the Infant Gastroesophageal Reflux Questionnaire (IGERQ) and an airway symptoms questionnaire (ASQ). Those babies with an IGERQ score of less than sixteen (no more than mild reflux) and an ASQ score greater than six will be eligible for randomization. The patient will then be randomly placed in the control group (placebo) or the intervention group (ranitidine 2mg/kg every 12 hours or famotidine 0.5 mg/kg daily). Patients will stay on medication for a minimum of 6 months, or until symptoms resolve. Patients will be seen in follow up at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8 and 10 months. At which time I-GERQ, ASQ and weights will be taken. The primary outcome measure will be the time for the ASQ score to drop to normal on ranitidine or famotidine versus placebo. A secondary outcome will be weight gain in percentile. If the patient's I-GERQ score goes above 16 at any time in the study, the patient will be crossed over to the treatment arm and started on medical treatment.