Effect of Nebulized Magnesium vs Placebo Added to Albuterol on Hospitalization Among Children With Refractory Acute Asthma Treated in the Emergency DepartmentA Randomized Clinical Trial

Corresponding Author: Suzanne Schuh, MD, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Ave, Toronto, M5G 1X8, ON, Canada (suzanne.schuh@sickkids.ca).

Accepted for Publication: September 21, 2020.

Author Contributions: Dr Schuh had full access to all of the data in the study and takes responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis.

Concept and design: Schuh, Coates, Willan, Zemek, Plint, Gravel, Ducharme, Johnson, Black, Curtis, Klassen, Nicksy, Freedman.

Acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data: Sweeney, Rumantir, Willan, Stephens, Atenafu, Finkelstein, Thompson, Zemek, Plint, Gravel, Black, Curtis, Beer, Nicksy, Freedman.

Drafting of the manuscript: Schuh, Stephens, Curtis, Nicksy, Freedman.

Critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content: Schuh, Sweeney, Rumantir, Coates, Willan, Stephens, Atenafu, Finkelstein, Thompson, Zemek, Plint, Gravel, Ducharme, Johnson, Black, Curtis, Beer, Klassen, Freedman.

Statistical analysis: Willan, Stephens, Atenafu.

Obtained funding: Schuh, Zemek, Plint, Gravel, Johnson, Curtis, Freedman.

Administrative, technical, or material support: Sweeney, Rumantir, Coates, Finkelstein, Thompson, Gravel, Ducharme, Black, Beer, Nicksy, Freedman.

Supervision: Schuh, Sweeney, Rumantir, Johnson, Beer, Klassen.

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: Dr Schuh reported receiving grants from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR), Thrasher Research Fund, Physicians’ Services Incorporated Foundation, and Hospital for Sick Children and nonfinancial support from La Diffusion Technique Francaise during the conduct of the study. Dr Sweeney reported receiving grants from the Hospital for Sick Children during the conduct of the study. Dr Finkelstein reported receiving grants from CIHR during the conduct of the study. Dr Zemek reported holding competitively funded research grants from CIHR, Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation, Physicians’ Services Incorporated Foundation, CHEO Foundation, Ontario Brain Institute, Ontario SPOR Support Unit, National Football League, and Clinical Research Chair in Pediatric Concussion from the University of Ottawa. He has no commercial conflicts of interest to disclose. Dr Gravel reported receiving grants from CIHR during the conduct of the study. Dr Ducharme reported receiving unrestricted research funds from GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca, Novartis, Teva, and Trudell Medical; grants from GlaxoSmithKline, Covis, Thorasys, and CIHR; and personal fees from Thorasys, Covis, and Teva outside the submitted work. No other disclosures were reported.

Funding/Support: This research was supported by grants from CIHR, the Thrasher Research Fund, the Physicians’ Services Incorporated Foundation, and the Hospital for Sick Children. Dr Freedman is supported by the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation Professorship in Child Health and Wellness.

Role of the Funder/Sponsor: The funders had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit the manuscript for publication.

Group Information: The Pediatric Emergency Research Canada (PERC) Network members include the following: Suzanne Schuh, MD, Judy Sweeney, RN, BScN, Maggie Rumantir, MD, Allan L. Coates, MDCM, BEng, Andrew R. Willan, PhD, Derek Stephens, MSc, BSc, Yaron Finkelstein, MD, and Darcy Nicksy, BScPhM (The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada); Graham Thompson, MD, and Stephen B. Freedman, MDCM, MSc (Alberta Children’s Hospital, Calgary, Alberta, Canada); Darcy Beer, MD, and Terry Klassen, MD, MSc (Winnipeg Children’s Hospital, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada); Sarah Curtis, MD (Stollery Children’s Hospital, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada); Jocelyn Gravel, MD, MSc, and Francine Ducharme, MD, MSc (Sainte-Justine Pédiatrie, Montreal, Quebec, Canada); Roger Zemek, MD, and Amy Plint, MD, MSc (Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada); and Karen Black, MD, MSc (British Columbia Children’s Hospital, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada).

Meeting Presentation: This study was accepted for a platform presentation at the annual conference of the Pediatric Academic Societies; May 2020; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Additional Contributions: We thank the participants and their families for trusting us to conduct this trial; the trial investigators and support staff across all sites for their commitment to the successful conduct of the trial; the site coordinators, including Rena Papadimitropoulos (research coordinator, Children’s Hospital of Winnipeg), Arpita Majundar (MSc, Children’s Hospital of Winnipeg), Jianling Xie (MD, MPH, Alberta Children’s Hospital), Dale Dalgleish (RN, BHScN, CHEO), Candice McGahern (BA, CHEO), Ally Slattery (RN, British Columbia Children’s Hospital), Maryse Lagace (RN, BScN, CCRP, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montreal), Manasi Rajagopal (research coordinator, Stollery Children’s Hospital), and Nadia Dow (research coordinator, Stollery Children’s Hospital) for trial coordination; the emergency department physicians, nurses, and ancillary staff at all sites; the staff of the Pediatric Research Academic Initiative at SickKids Emergency (PRAISE) and of the SickKids Emergency Assistants for Research in Child Health (SEARCH) programs for identifying potentially eligible participants; Tanveer H. Collins (MD, The Hospital for Sick Children) for his help with the database; Aya Finkelstein (The Hospital for Sick Children) for her help with the study database; and Lejla Halilovic (BSc, The Hospital for Sick Children) for her administrative assistance with the manuscript preparation. The site coordinators and Dr Collins received financial compensation for their role in the study. The other contributors were not compensated.

Data Sharing Statement: See Supplement 6.