Conventional Oxygen Therapy in Childhood Emergencies at the Albert Royer National Children's Hospital in Dakar: A Retrospective Study

Background: Conventional oxygen therapy is administered via various devices (nasal cannula, simple or high-concentration masks, face masks). It is currently the first stage in symptomatic acute respiratory failure (ARF) treatment before introducing non-invasive or invasive mechanical ventilation. Objective: To evaluate conventional oxygen therapy techniques, the different indications, the duration of use and the outcome. Methods: This retrospective study was conducted from January to July 2021 at the Albert Royer National Children's Hospital, Dakar, Senegal. Results: The records of 129 patients were retrieved; this represented 14.4% of total admissions. The mean age was 32.28 months, and the sex ratio was 1.26. The leading diagnoses included bronchiolitis (34.11%), asthma (20.16%), and pneumonia (16.28%). The methods of conventional oxygen delivery included simple nasal cannulas (89.92%), simple masks (9.3%), and masks with high-concentration reservoirs (8.5%). The outcome was good in 83.72% of cases, while 16.28% died. Conclusion: Conventional oxygen therapy is widely used to manage acute respiratory failure. The outcome remains generally good despite a notably high mortality rate, which may be due to the inadequacy of non-invasive oxygenation methods and diagnostic tools such as blood gas analysis.