Status asthmaticus is an acute exacerbation of asthma that often requires treatment in a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Standard therapies for status asthmaticus include corticosteroids and bronchodilators, typically albuterol. Ipratropium bromide is also a bronchodilator, but has a different mechanism of action than albuterol. The addition of Ipraropium to children in the Emergency Room with severe asthma exacerbations improves outcomes, so many PICU doctors treat patients with status asthmaticus with Ipratropium. However, two studies of children hospitalized in the general wards of the hospital (not the PICU) show that the addition of Ipratropium to standard care does not effect clinical outcomes. This study is a first step towards determining in Ipratropium is helpful in PICU patients (like it is in ER patients) or if it not helpful (like it is in general ward patients).
