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Theophylline in treatment of apnoea of prematurity
Author(s) -
GUPTA J. M.,
MERCER H. P.,
KOO W. W. K.
Publication year - 1981
Publication title -
journal of paediatrics and child health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.631
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1440-1754
pISSN - 1034-4810
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-1754.1981.tb01962.x
Subject(s) - theophylline , medicine , placebo , anesthesia , placebo group , incidence (geometry) , physics , alternative medicine , pathology , optics
. In order to determine the usefulness of theophylline in the management of apnoea of prematurity, a double blind trial was carried out by using six bottles of solution, three of which contained theophylline and the other three contained a placebo in the same base as theophylline. The incidence of apnoeic episodes diminished within 6–12 hours of commencement of therapy in 10 of 15 patients in the theophylline group with no further episodes over the next 48 hours in contrast to no response in 11 of 14 patients in the placebo group (P < 0.01). Treatment with a known solution of theophylline (following failure in the trial) resulted in termination of apnoeic spells in 8 of 11 patients in the placebo group and in 1 of 4 patients in the theophylline group. Three of the 14 patients in the placebo group and one of the 15 patients in the theophylline group have been excluded from the statistical analysis as they suffered from apnoea associated with fatal conditions