Parent initiated oral prednisolone for acute asthma in children aged 5-11 years: randomised controlled trial

Funded Activity Summary

The objective of this trial is to determine whether parents should commence prednisolone (a steroid anti-inflammatory drug) for an asthma attack in their child without waiting to see a doctor first. This strategy could be described as parent initiated prednisolone in asthma (PIPA). PIPA is an important consideration in every child's asthma management plan, but because of a lack of research evidence the role of PIPA is not clarified in any of the international asthma guidelines. Hence prednisolone is rarely commenced without waiting for a preceding medical review. PIPA has the potential to significantly reduce the health and economic burden of the disease by increasing the proportion of asthma exacerbations managed at home rather than in the emergency department or hospital. Prednisolone has been shown to be an effective drug when it is given to children with an asthma attack that is severe enough for them to attend hospital. Whilst it would seem logical that PIPA should be an effective strategy it is important to recognise that mild attacks are far more common than severe ones, and the promotion of PIPA as standard practice would be associated with a significant increase in the frequency prednisolone administration. As such it is important to determine if prednisolone is safe and effective when commenced in the home setting. The PIPA trial has many unique features: It is community based, where the vast majority of asthmatic children are managed. The eligibility criteria and dosing schedule have been chosen to mimic 'real world' management and it will be easy for clinicians and families to interpret and apply the results. A very large number of children will be involved (308) which has been made feasible by the trial setting and recruitment methods. Furthermore the protocol has been designed in accordance with the highest standards specified by the international research community and has been submitted to 'The Lancet' for pre-trial publication.

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 01-01-2006

End Date: 01-01-2006

Funding Scheme: NHMRC Project Grants

Funding Amount: $139,250.00

Funder: National Health and Medical Research Council

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

Respiratory Diseases

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

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Other Keywords

Airway disease | Asthma | Corticosteroids | Paediatrics | Parent initiated | Randomised controlled trial

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