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Introduction: Asthma is a major economic burden to families and public healthcare since it leads to a large number of emergency room (ER) visits and hospital admissions. Whereas healthcare programs for children with asthma have proved to be very effective to improve the course of the disease, there is less information about programs for children with severe asthma., Objective: To comparatively analyze the impact of the Healthcare Program for Children with Severe Asthma (Programa de Atención de Niños con Asma Grave, PANAG)., Methods: This was a longitudinal, pre- and postintervention study. Two approaches were used to compare the frequency of asthma exacerbations and hospital admissions due to severe asthma in a group of patients: regular follow-up in a public hospital (pre-intervention period, 18 months) and follow-up while participating in PANAG (post-intervention period, 18 months). During the Program, patients received preventive treatment free of charge; educational activities were also organized., Results: Twenty children were included, 16 (80%) out of the 20 were females, and the mean age was 13.3 years (SD 3.8). During the pre-intervention period 59 asthma attacks were recorded; after PANAG was implemented, they decreased to 26. This accounts for a significant reduction of 55% of asthma attacks (p= 0.0002). During the period previous to PANAG implementation, there were 4 asthma-related hospital admissions. In the period after the program implementation, there was only one hospital admission., Conclusions: The Healthcare Program for Patients with Severe Asthma is an effective strategy to manage this disease. This healthcare program is affordable to be used in a public hospital.

Introduction: Cystic fibrosis is a genetic autosomal recessive disease that affects approximately 1:6000 live births in our country. Chronic infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) is associated with higher morbidity and-mortality, and deterioration of lung function. Treatment of initial infection is important to prevent or delay chronic infection. The primary aim was to determine the effectiveness and freetime of PA in bronchial secretions after eradication treatment. The secondary objective was to determine changes in the weight and lung function., Materials and Methods: Prospective, observational study, of patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) and recent PA infection. After initial infection by PA patients received oral ciprofoxacin and nebulized colistin. We studied effectiveness of treatment to eradicate PA, and changes in the weight measured in Z score and in the respiratory functional tests, pre-infection, during, and after the eradication of PA., Results: We included 24 patients (11 male) with confirmed CF. Seven of them had two PA infections, and received 2 treatment courses. PA was eradicated in 24 (80.5%) out of 31 infections. The value of weight measured in Z score, and functional tests measures through the FVC and FEV1 decreased during the infection by PA, returning to the baseline after eradication. The free-time of PA during the follow-up to these patients was 23.75 (95% CI 14.38-32.86) months., Conclusion: Treatment of initial infection by PA has a high degree of response. Weight and functional values improved after treatment.

Introduction: Acute lower respiratory infection in children usually causes Bronchial Obstructive Syndrome, which could include hipoxemia. Although pulse oximetry (SaO2) is the gold standard to evaluate hipoxemia, it is usually estimated from a clinical score not yet validated. We aimed to validate the respiratory distress score used in Argentina and to compare its performance with the one used in Chile., Methods: We included 200 children aged under 2 years, with Bronchial Obstructive Syndrome. On admission SaO2 and, Argentinean and Chilean scores components (respiratory rate, heart rate, wheezing, chest indrawing, cyanosis) were assessed. We evaluated the score components ability to predict hipoxemia (SaO2 < or = 95 and SaO2 < or = 91) by logistic regression. Correlation between Argentinean score and SaO2 was estimated. The best threshold of both scores to predict hipoxemia was calculated by ROC curve. Sensitivity, specificity, predictive values and likelihood ratios of both scores to predict hipoxemia were calculated., Results: Chest indrawing was an independent predictor of hipoxemia (SaO2 < or = 95 and SaO2 < or = 91) (OR: 3.1 IC95%:1.6-5.9 and OR: 13.8 IC95%:1.8-105.4, respectively). The Argentinean score showed acceptable correlation with SaO2 (Spearman: -0,492; p< 0,0001). On SaO2 < or = 91 the Argentinean score showed the best diagnostic performance (auc= 0.904). An Argentinean score > or = 5 was the best threshold to predict hipoxemia (Sensitivity= 100%, specificity= 54.3%). The Chilean score was also evaluated, showing a performance slightly worst than the Argentinean., Conclusion: An Argentinean score > or = 5 points was sensitive enough to predict hipoxemia (SaO2 < or = 91). This score only allowed identifying children who does not benefit from supplementary oxygen.