Air leak test in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (ALTIPICU): rationale and protocol for a prospective multicentre observational study.

Introduction: In children, respiratory distress due to upper airway obstruction (UAO) is a common complication of extubation. The quantitative cuff-leak test (qtCLT) is a simple, rapid and non-invasive test that has not been extensively studied in children. The objective of the ongoing study whose protocol is reported here is to investigate how well the qtCLT predicts UAO-related postextubation respiratory distress in paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) patients.

Viral Identification Using Multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction Testing Does Not Reduce Antibiotic Prescribing in Paediatric Intensive Care Units.

PCR tests for viral identification, performed on nasopharyngeal secretions, have experienced a major boom in the last few years. Their use is very frequent, but their indications are still not well defined, especially in Paediatric Intensive Care Units (PICU). These tests are used for the microbiological diagnosis of lower respiratory infections but can be used in other situations.

Decannulation in congenital central hypoventilation syndrome.

Rationale: Patients with congenital central hypoventilation syndrome (CCHS) require long-term ventilation to ensure gas exchange and to prevent deleterious consequences for neurocognitive development. Two ventilation modes may be used for these patients depending on their tolerance, one invasive by tracheostomy and the other noninvasive (NIV). For patients who have undergone a tracheostomy, transition to NIV is possible when they meet predefined criteria.