Real-life study of the role of high-flow nasal cannula for bronchiolitis in children younger than 3 months hospitalised in general pediatric departments.

We aimed to describe the real-life role of high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) for bronchiolitis in infants under 3 months of age admitted to three general pediatric departments during the 2017-2018 epidemic period. We retrospectively assessed the clinical severity (Wang score) for every 24-h period of treatment (H0-H24 and H24-H48) according to the initiated medical care (HFNC, oxygen via nasal cannula, or supportive treatments only), the child's discomfort (EDIN score), and transfer to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). A total of 138 infants were included: 47±53 days old, 4661±851.9 g, 70 boys (50.7%), 58 with hypoxemia (42%), Wang score of 6.67±2.58, 110 (79.7%) staying for 48 consecutive hours in the same ward. During the H0-H24 period, only patients treated with HFNC had a statistically significant decrease in the severity score (n=21/110; -2 points, P=0.002) and an improvement in the discomfort score (n=15/63; -3.8 points, P<0.0001). There was no difference between groups during the H24-H48 period. The rate of admission to the PICU was 2.9% for patients treated for at least 24 h with HFNC (n=34/138, 44% with oxygen) versus 16.3% for the others (P=0.033). Early use of HFNC improves both clinical status and discomfort in infants younger than 3 months admitted for moderately severe bronchiolitis, whatever their oxygen status.

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