Assessment and management of asthma exacerbations in an emergency department unit

Background: The Pediatric Respiratory Assessment Measure (PRAM) score is a useful tool for the assessment of asthma exacerbations in children. This study aimed to estimate the risk of hospital-ization in children, assessed with the PRAM score and having mild-moderate asthma exacerbation, who were treated with salbutamol delivered via a metered-dose inhaler and spacer (MDI/S).Methods: The study population consisted of children aged 3-16 years with mild-moderate asthma exacerbations. All children received 1mg/kg prednisolone p.o. (max 40 mg) and 4-6 puffs of salbutamol via MDI/S.Results: Fifty patients participated in the study. Admission was associated positively with the initial PRAM score (OR: 18.91, CI: 2.42-123.12, P = 0.005) and negatively with the improvement in PRAM score (OR: 0.52, CI: 0.01-0.78, P = 0.032).Conclusion: PRAM is a reliable tool that can be used effectively to estimate the asthma exac-erbation severity. (c) 2023 Codon Publications. Published by Codon Publications.