Ribavirin treatment of respiratory synctial virus infection in neonatal intensive care unit survivors

Abstract

Objective: To determine the value of aerosolised ribavirin in the treatment of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) bronchiolitis. Design: a retrospective study. Setting: The paediatric intensive care units of two tertiary care centres. Subjects: Forty one former premature (<36 weeks) infants requiring mechanical ventilation (MV) for documented RSV infection (by either Elisa and/or culture). Intervention: Twenty-one patients received 16 h of aerosolised ribavirin for 3 days (group A) and 20 infants did not receive any ribavirin (group B). Measurements: The groups were compared for age, sex, weight, gestational age, incidence of apnoea, blood gas analysis, alveolar-arterial gradients, PaO2, PaCO2, and underlying pulmonary disease. Outcome variables included paediatric risk of mortality (PRISM) score, days of mechanical ventilation (MV), ICU days, hospital length of stay, and mortality. The data were analysed using the student t-test, chi-square and logistic regression. Results: There was no difference betw...