[Incidence of unplanned extubations in a neonatal intensive care unit. A before and after study]. / Frecuencia de extubaciones no programadas en una unidad de cuidados intensivos neonatales. Estudio antes y después.

INTRODUCTION: Unplanned extubations (UE) of mechanically ventilated newborns involves an undesirable increase in morbidity and mortality. OBJECTIVE: A 2-stage study compared the frequency of UE in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit before and after the implementation of a program of preventive measures to decrease UE. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A before and after prospective study included all mechanically ventilated newborns participating in the 2 stage study from May-December 2011 and June-December 2012. In stage 1, the rate of UE per 100 intubated patient days was calculated and the characteristics of unplanned extubated newborns, circumstances of UE occurrence and need for re-intubation were studied. Consequently, a program of preventive measures for UE was designed and implemented, with the same variables being analysed in stage 2. RESULTS: No differences were found in patient characteristics during the two stages. Stage 1, incidence of UE was 5/100 intubated patient days; Stage 2, 4.5 UE/100 intubated patient days (P=.657). In both stages, most UE occurred during patient handling with re-intubation incidence at 77.4% and 67.7%, respectively. The combined rate of both stages during summer months of July, August and September was 6.2 UE/100 intubation days, in contrast with the remaining months of both stages: UE incidence rate, 3.4 UE/100 intubation days (p=.043). CONCLUSIONS: The implementation of a preventive measures program did not significantly reduce the incidence of UE. The summer period showed the highest incidence of UE.

Tratamiento preventivo para la migraña en niños: cuándo y cómo / Preventive therapy in migraine disorders: when and how

Conclusiones de los autores: aunque se han estudiado diversos fármacos en la profilaxis de la migraña en niños, la mayoría de los ensayos clínicos son de tamaño muestral pequeño y no están metodológicamente bien diseñados. Hay más datos de flunarizina y propranolol aunque la evidencia clínica no es consistente. Sobre el topiramato se concluye que su eficacia debe ser confirmada en más estudios bien diseñados. Comentario de los revisores: topiramato y flunarizina muestran una evidencia clínica aceptable en la reducción de la frecuencia de migraña y su intensidad en niños. La evidencia relativa a propranolol es controvertida, por lo que se reservaría como fármaco de segunda elección. Los tres fármacos son seguros. Para establecer una evidencia sólida sería prioritaria la realización de ensayos clínicos de gran tamaño y bien diseñados con los tres fármacos citados (AU)

Authors’ conclusion: despite the fact that several drugs to prevent migraines have been studied in children, most trials have small size and poor design. Flunarizine and propranolol are the best studied drugs although the clinical evidence is not consistent enough. In relation to topiramate, its effectiveness has to be confirmed in more adequately designed studies. Reviewers’ commentary: topiramate and flunarizine show acceptable evidence reducing frequency and intensity of migraines in children. Propranolol has controversial evidence, so it is advisable to keep it for second choice. All three drugs are safe. There is an urgent need to perform well designed and large trials to establish solid evidence with topiramate, flunarizine and propranolol (AU)