Cíntia Johnston

I Recomendação brasileira de fisioterapia respiratória em unidade de terapia intensiva pediátrica e neonatal

Developing guidelines for the role of the physiotherapist in neonatal and pediatric intensive care units is essential because these professionals are responsible for the rehabilitation of critically ill patients. Rehabilitation includes the evaluation and prevention of functional kinetic alterations, application of treatment interventions (respiratory and/or motor physiotherapy), control and application of medical gases, care of mechanical ventilation, weaning and extubation, tracheal gas insufflation, inflation/deflation of the endotracheal cuff protocol, and surfactant application, aiming to allow patients to have a full recovery and return to their functional activities. In this article, we present guidelines that are intended to guide the physiotherapist in some of the prevention/treatment interventions in respiratory therapy (airway clearance, lung expansion, position in bed, airway suction, drug inhalation, and cough assist), which help in the rehabilitation process of newborns and children in intensive care units during mechanical ventilation and up to 12 hours following extubation.

Bronquiolite aguda, uma revisão atualizada

Acute bronchiolitis (AB) is a frequent cause of hospitalization among children and its main etiological agent is respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). It occurs epidemically during autumn and winter. Some populations of children such as premature newborns, infants with congenital heart disease and those with chronic lung disease, immunocompromised, undernourished, among others, present increased morbidity and mortality risk. The virus multiplies in epithelial ciliated cells while inflammation and cellular debris cause obstruction of the airways, hyperinflation, atelectasis, and wheezing and gas exchange imbalance. Definitive evidence still does not exist about treatment of this disease, Treatment includes oxygen therapy, hydration, inhaled beta-2 agonists, racemic epinephrine, recombinant DNase and respirotherapy, among others. Prophylactic measures include administration of monoclonal antibodies. The majority of children with AB, independent of disease severity, recover without sequels. The natural course of this disease usually varies, from seven to ten days ,however some children may not recover for weeks.

Atelectasias em pediatria: mecanismos, diagnóstico e tratamento

OBJECTIVE: To review the literature about mechanisms, diagnosis and treatment of atelectasis in the pediatric patient. METHODS: An electronic data search was carried out in Medline and Scielo using the following inclusion criteria for articles published between 1960 and 2007 about: atelectasis etiology, physiopathology, functional consequences, evaluation, prevention, treatment and complications, in pediatrics. The used key words were atelectasis, children, pediatrics, mucus plugs, chest physiotherapy; RESULTS: 45 pulmonary atelectasis articles were analyzed, 17 of them in pediatrics. Of the pediatric, 13 were case series, 3 literature reviews and one a case report. This demonstrates that there were few articles on atelectasis during the reviewed period and that these articles were at the D and E evidence level. CONCLUSION: No clinical trials were performed to identify s the most efficient treatment for atelectasis in the pediatric patient. Although clinical practice for treatment of atelectasis has evolved, mostly due to improvement of bronchoscopy and chest physiotherapy techniques, there is still a need to perform randomized clinical trials to address treatment of atelectasis in the pediatric patient.