Short-term and long-term secondary outcomes
| Outcomes | Prednisolone | N | Placebo | N | Difference/OR (95% CI) | P value |
| Short-term | ||||||
| PRAM score at 4 hours, median (IQR) | 1 (0 to 2) | 167 | 2 (0 to 3) | 169 | 0 (−1 to 0)* | 0.01 |
| Change in PRAM score at 4 hours†, mean (SD) | −4.18 (2.26) | 167 | −3.51 (2.45) | 169 | −0.67 (−1.18 to −0.16) | 0.01 |
| PRAM score at 4 hours,† No. (%) | ||||||
| 0 (no disease) | 44 (26.4%) | 167 | 43 (25.4%) | 169 | – | 0.003 |
| 1 to 4 (mild disease) | 115 (68.9%) | 97 (57.4%) | ||||
| 5 to 8 (moderate disease) | 8 (4.8%) | 26 (15.4%) | ||||
| 9 to 12 (severe disease) | 0 (0%) | 3 (1.8%) | ||||
| PRAM score at 24 hours, median (IQR) | 1 (0 to 1) | 198 | 0 (0 to 1) | 195 | 0 (0 to 0)* | 0.01 |
| PRAM score at 24 hours,† No. (%) | ||||||
| 0 (no disease) | 127 (64.1%) | 198 | 105 (53.9%) | 195 | – | 0.15 |
| 1 to 4 (mild disease) | 67 (33.8%) | 82 (42.1%) | ||||
| 5 to 8 (moderate disease) | 4 (2.0%) | 7 (3.6%) | ||||
| 9 to 12 (severe disease) | 0 (0%) | 1 (0.5%) | ||||
| Length of ED stay for discharged patients, median (IQR), hours | 5.6 (4.2 to 7.7) | 171 | 6.0 (4.5 to 8.9) | 161 | −0.57 (−1.15 to 0.02)* | 0.06 |
| Requirement for hospital admission, No. (%); OR | 56 (23.5) | 238 | 75 (31.4) | 239 | 0.67 (0.45 to 1.01) | 0.05 |
| Length of inpatient stay, median (IQR), hours | 26.3 (18.6 to 36.9) | 54 | 29.2 (22.2 to 40.8) | 70 | −2.9 (−7.8 to 2.4)* | 0.27 |
| MDI doses of salbutamol in first 48 hours, median (IQR) | 18 (6 to 36) | 231 | 18 (6 to 56) | 234 | 0 (−6 to 0)* | 0.27 |
| Treatment with additional open label oral prednisolone, No. (%); OR | 3 (1.3%) | 238 | 13 (5.4%) | 239 | 0.22 (0.06 to 0.79) NNT=24 (13 to 109) | 0.01 |
| Adverse events | ||||||
| Admission to intensive care unit, No. (%); OR | 2 (0.8%) | 238 | 0 (0%) | 239 | Undefined | – |
| Treatment with intravenous medication, No. (%); OR | 3 (1.3%) | 238 | 11 (4.6%) | 239 | 0.27 (0.07 to 0.96) NNT=30 (15 to 444) | 0.03 |
| Representation to hospital within 7 days, No. (%); OR | 2 (0.8%) | 238 | 2 (0.8%) | 239 | 1.00 (0.14 to 7.18) | 1.00 |
| Representation to primary care within 7 days, No. (%); OR | 17 (7.1%) | 238 | 23 (9.6%) | 239 | 0.72 (0.38 to 1.39) | 0.33 |
| Long-term | ||||||
| Condition improved at 7 days, No. (%); OR | 195 (96.1%) | 203 | 208 (98.1%) | 212 | 0.47 (0.14 to 1.59) | 0.22 |
| Back to usual self at 7 days, No. (%); OR | 177 (87.6%) | 202 | 187 (87.8%) | 213 | 0.98 (0.55 to 1.77) | 0.96 |
| MDI doses of salbutamol in first 7 days, median (IQR) | 78 (36 to 126) | 105 | 87 (42 to 135) | 106 | −8 (−24 to 8)* | 0.33 |
*Medians, difference and 95% CI estimated using Hodges-Lehmann estimates, p values from Wilcoxon test.
†Post hoc analysis.
CI, confidence level; ED, emergency department; IQR, interquartile range; MDI, metered dosed inhaler; NNT, number needed to treat; OR, odds ratio; PRAM, Preschool Respiratory Assessment Measure; SD, standard deviation.