Comparison of the effects of intravenous magnesium sulphate versus intravenous aminophylline in acute attack of asthma in Pediatric Emergency Department, Lahore General Hospital, Lahore

In children acute severe asthma is a serious condition. The inhaled route for drug delivery is not appropriate when only small respiratory gas volumes are shifted; the i.v. route may be associated with greater side effects. Magnesium sulphate IV has a place in acute asthma management because it is a mild bronchodilator, and has a stabilizing effect on the atria. Objective: To compare the effectiveness of intravenous magnesium sulphate versus intravenous aminophylline in acute attack of asthma. Study Design: Randomized control trial. Setting: Emergency Department of pediatric Duration: April 2017 to October 2017.Material & Methods: 60 cases were included in the study. They were randomly divided in two comparable groups. Children in group A ware treated with intravenous magnesium sulphate and group B with intravenous aminophylline. The efficacy of the drug was judged by the improvement in the sign observed like respiratory rate (less than 40 per minute), pulse rate(<100), oxygen saturation( above 90 %) assessed after the time period of three hours. Results: Effectiveness of intravenous magnesium sulphate in acute attack of asthma was found in 28 cases in Group A (93.33%) and in 22 cases in Group B (73.33%) with p-value 0.03. However, 6.67% cases (2 cases) in Group A and 26.67% cases (8 cases) in Group B did not show effectiveness. Conclusion: The clinical efficacy of intravenous magnesium sulphate in managing case of acute severe asthma was better when compared with intravenous aminophylline.