Hypertonic Saline for Infants Hospitalized with Bronchiolitis?

Bronchiolitis is the most common reason for infant hospitalizations in the U.S. Treatment is mainly supportive care until symptoms resolve, given that prior studies have shown that treatment with bronchodilators or steroids does not decrease the length of stay (LOS), which on average is about 2.4 days. Administration of nebulized 3% hypertonic saline (HS) was shown in initial studies to improve symptoms and decrease LOS in infants hospitalized with bronchiolitis. However, later studies failed to demonstrate a benefit.

To further examine the potential effectiveness of HS in this setting, investigators conducted a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial in which 227 infants admitted to a children's hospital with bronchiolitis received 4 mL …