Caffeine Was Associated With Shorter Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Treatment for Infants up to Eight Weeks Old Hospitalised for Bronchiolitis.

Abstract

Aim: Bronchiolitis is the leading cause of hospitalisation before 1 year of age, with no treatment available, while caffeine stimulates respiratory function in young infants. This pilot study investigated the impact of caffeine on infants up to 8-week-old hospitalised for bronchiolitis, regardless of apnoea.

Method: An observational study was conducted from October 2021 to February 2022 and from October 2022 to February 2023 in two Paris hospitals. The outcomes included adverse events and the need for, and duration of, ventilatory support and nutritional support.

Results: We recruited 186 patients (55% boys) at a median age of 4.5 weeks. The 65 patients who received caffeine required nutritional support significantly less often than the no caffeine group (p < 0.001). The duration of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) was significantly shorter in patients in the caffeine group (4.1 days) than in the no caffeine group (7.1 days) (p = 0.003). There was a nonsignificant shorter duration of nutritional support in those who required ventilatory support (p = 0.05). Caffeine was well tolerated.

Conclusion: Caffeine reduced the duration of CPAP and the need for and duration of nutritional support through a direct effect on the digestive system or overall improvement. These results should be confirmed by randomised trials.