Randomised controlled trial of oxygen therapy and high-flow nasal therapy in African children with pneumonia

In Africa, severe pneumonia remains the leading cause of mortality in children under 5 years old [1], posing a major disease burden on health systems. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends presumptive antibiotic treatment and oxygen for those with clinicallydefined severe pneumonia and/or hypoxaemia (peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO₂) < 90%) [2]. However, the evidence under-pinning the use of oxygen therapy is weak [3] and it is generally poorly targeted using non-specific clinical signs [4] since many paediatric services lack pulse oximeters [5, 6]. In-hospital mortality among pneumonia cases is high (9–16%) with hypoxemic children at fivefold greater risk of death [6, 7]. WHO recommends research on the targeted use of oxygen therapy together with simple, non-invasive methods of respiratory support as cost-effective strategies for improving outcome [3], but these have not yet been tested in adequately powered randomised controlled trials [8, 9].

A key challenge for the trial design is the significant gap between supply and demand for oxygen in resource-limited African hospitals. Expense and logistic challenges mean that many lack sustainable provision of bottled oxygen [10], as highlighted in a survey of 231 health facilities (12 African countries) showing only 43% had an uninterrupted source of oxygen, 24% had a functioning oxygen concentrator (the WHO-preferred source of oxygen [2]) and an only 81 (35%) had uninterrupted electricity supply (necessary for oxygen concentrators) [11]. Thus, in many hospitals children with severe pneumonia receive little or no oxygen, whether this contributes to the poor outcomes is unknown.

The Children’s Oxygen Administration Strategies Trial (COAST) simultaneously addressed two hypotheses. First, whether liberal oxygenation strategies in children with SpO₂ ≥ 80–91% will decrease mortality (at 48 h and up to 28 days) compared with a permissive hypoxia strategy. Second, whether respiratory support with high-flow nasal therapy (OptiFlow^™) decreases mortality (at 48 h and up to 28 days) compared with low-flow oxygen delivery (standard care) [12].

COAST was a two-stratum multicentre, open, fractional-factorial RCT (see statistical methods, Supplemental Appendix) conducted in four Ugandan and two Kenyan hospitals. Children aged 28 days to 12 years, hospitalised with a history of respiratory illness and any one of the 2013 WHO clinical definitions of severe pneumonia [13] plus hypoxaemia (SpO₂ < 92%) were enrolled into either the severe hypoxaemia stratum (SpO₂ < 80%) or the hypoxaemia stratum (SpO₂ 80–91%). Children with previous diagnosed but uncorrected cyanotic heart disease, chronic lung disease (excluding asthma), children given oxygen given at another health facility (or > 3 h at the current hospital) or previous COAST enrolment were excluded. In the severe hypoxaemia stratum, eligible children were randomised (ratio 1:1) to high-flow nasal therapy (HFNT) via OptiFlow^™ or low-flow oxygen delivery (LFO: standard practice). In the hypoxaemia stratum, eligible children were randomised (ratio 1:1:2) to HFNT via OptiFlow^™, LFO delivery (standard practice) or permissive hypoxaemia since pre-existing data indicated no differences in mortality across the SpO₂ range 80–89% [12, 14] (see Supplemental Appendix and Trial Protocol).

The trial was stopped prematurely in by the Trial Steering Committee on the grounds of feasibility as a result of a campaign to terminate the trial in Uganda, which deemed permissive hypoxaemia (permissive hypoxaemia) unethical (detailed in the Supplemental Methods).

Between 14th Feb 2017 and when enrolment ceased (28th Feb 2020) 1842 eligible children were enrolled into the COAST trial and included in all analyses (Fig. 1), Of 388 in the severe hypoxaemia stratum, 194 children were randomised to HFNT and 194 to LFO. Of 1454 children in the hypoxaemia stratum, 363 to were randomised to HFNT, 364 to LFO and 727 to permissive hypoxaemia. Baseline characteristics are presented in Table 1 demonstrating multiple features of severe pneumonia were present in all children. In the respective strata median SpO₂ was 75 (68, 78) and 88 (85, 90); 75 and 65% had radiographically confirmed pneumonia. Additional baseline features and working diagnoses reported at 48 h are summarised in Supplemental Tables S2a, b.

The premature termination of the COAST trial meant that it was unable answer the two specific hypotheses it was designed to address. First, whether liberal oxygenation therapy for children with hypoxaemia (SpO₂ 80–91%) is superior to permissive hypoxaemia. In this stratum, however, the overall 48 h and Day 28 mortality was low across all arms including the permissive hypoxaemia arm. Second, as the trial was stopped prematurely there were insufficient data to demonstrate that HFNT was superior to LFO, but caution that the interpretation may be subject to a Type II error i.e. false negative (no benefit of HFNT versus LFO) since it was underpowered to uncover true effects, should they exist. However, the size of reduction (40%) in 48-h mortality warrants further investigation particularly for children with severe hypoxaemia (SpO₂ < 80%). Notably, across both strata the method of HFNT administration was also relatively oxygen-sparing, using room air/oxygen blends without any evidence of harm. In the hypoxaemia stratum in many cases HFNT was provided on room air, leading to correction of hypoxaemia, without any evidence of harm.

Although the trial does not provide definitive data to inform treatment guidelines, the knowledge acquired from the trial adds a new level of uncertainty to the liberal use of oxygen as a supportive therapy [21]. Equipoise, centred on the degree of uncertainty about the relative benefits (or risks) of a clinical intervention, requires a clear distinction between pre-existing knowledge (evidence) and opinion or personal preference [22]. In the case of severe pneumonia, pre-existing evidence demonstrating clear benefits of oxygen therapy was poor [3]. On that basis the trial was both ethically and scientifically sound [23]. Substantial uncertainty behoves clinicians to conduct RCTs so that in future societies will know which treatments are better and ensuring patients will not be exposed to inferior or harmful treatments.

Whilst oxygen, as a supportive therapy, has been considered the standard treatment for pneumonia for a large part of the last century, the recognition of potential oxygen toxicity is relatively recent [24]. In several areas of emergency care and resuscitation, the use of oxygen (and other therapies included in guidelines [25]) are now being challenged by emerging evidence from clinical trials, including in paediatric populations [26, 27], and in systematic reviews [21, 28]. In neonates, medical oxygen used during resuscitation increases mortality, myocardial injury and renal injury [29].

COAST was designed with cognisance of the significant gaps between supply and demand for oxygen in hospitals in developing countries [11]. Sustainable provision of bottled oxygen is expensive and logistically challenging [30]; therefore, the WHO-preferred source of oxygen is oxygen concentrators [2]. Nevertheless, technical reports on the operational quality, availability and reliability of cylinders and oxygen concentrators indicate that, even when available, these are often faulty and unsustainable due to high cost [10], or depend upon erratic electricity supply [11]. With regard to demand on health services, the routine use of pulse oximetry to target oxygen therapy is poorly implemented despite having been recommended by WHO for triage of sick children for over two decades [5]. Hence, oxygen therapy is generally targeted by non-specific clinical signs that predict hypoxaemia poorly [4], thus exposing large numbers of children without hypoxaemia to oxygen therapy, and raising questions over safety [28, 31], cost and demand for a constrained health resource [32]. Our findings indicating that hypoxaemia in children with severe pneumonia can be corrected without additional oxygen (including those on HFNT using room air alone) is timely given the major demand on health services for oxygen therapy as a result of the COVID-19 epidemic.

Recognising the resource limitations and costs of oxygen therapy, the protocol incorporated relatively oxygen-sparing strategies in the investigational groups (HFNT and permissive hypoxaemia) and vital sign monitoring to ensure early weaning in both liberal (HFNT and LFO) strategies (Supplemental Figure S4). Thus, over 48 h even in the most liberal of the strategies (LFO) the median volume of oxygen in the respective strata (3279 and 1337 L/child) were substantially lower than in a LFO equivalent strategy (5990L over a median of 2.5 days) reported in the multicentre study in Nigeria investigating oxygen use in children with pneumonia [6].

One key limitation of the COAST trial was its premature termination. Nevertheless, the COAST trial represents the largest trial of oxygen therapy ever conducted in children and the only multicentre controlled trial. Another limitation was that we were unable to confirm the pulse oximetry readings with arterial blood gases. We chose BITMOS sat 801 + , since it incorporates Masimo Signal Extraction Technology^® and was the instrument of choice in the large multicentre pneumonia aetiology study [19]. The substantially lower mortality in both strata of the trial, contrast to the mortality rates of 9–10 and 26–30%, respectively, reported in previous studies in African children, on which our power calculation was based [4, 6, 7, 33]. Most were conducted prior to the introduction of vaccines against the lead bacterial causes of paediatric pneumonia (Haemophilus influenzae type b and Streptococcus pneumoniae) into national immunization programs (including Uganda and Kenya) and/or the scaling-up of prevention and anti-retroviral medications for HIV. The resultant change in the aetiologic profile of childhood pneumonia was recently demonstrated by a multi-country case-control hypoxaemia studies of HIV-negative children with radiologically-confirmed pneumonia. Only 56/1749 (3·2%) cases had a positive blood culture and viruses accounted for 61% of cases. Respiratory syncytial virus, which is associated with low mortality [34], was the commonest pathogen [19]. The WHO severe pneumonia definition maximizes sensitivity over specificity, resulting in substantial overlap with other medical conditions [4, 35]. Notable in the COAST trial was the large proportion of previously undiagnosed cardiac conditions particularly in the sub-group with treatment failure. Nevertheless, radiologically confirmed pneumonia was present in a very large proportion of our study population, thus generalisable to children hospitalised with acute pneumonia in resource-limited hospitals.

HFNT has been shown in other populations to reduce the need for mechanical ventilation [36]. In that vast majority of hospitals in Africa access to mechanical ventilation or specialist intensive care is not standard. We, therefore, proposed that HFNT was a feasible alternative source of respiratory support owing to its relative simplicity in implementation, humidification, low risk of nosocomial infection [37]. In addition, the ability to blend both oxygen and room air to deliver positive end-expiratory pressure, thus, limiting exposure to high concentrations of oxygen (and potential toxicity) and with the prospect of reducing costs to health services. Bubble continuous positive airway pressure (bCPAP) is an alternative means of providing respiratory support. However, a recent trial in Malawian children showing worse outcomes in children receiving bCPAP than usual care advocates caution regarding implementation of bCPAP in a real-world setting without physician oversight [9].

In conclusion, our findings support the need for future trials with similar designs, particularly in settings where access to oxygen and/or mechanical respiratory support are restricted. The scale of the mortality reduction of HFNT over LFO, particularly in severely hypoxaemic children (40%) warrants further investigation. Oxygen-sparing strategies potentially offer cost-effective approaches to reducing overall oxygen requirements in overburdened health services and adds to the general findings in critical care than ‘less is more’ [38].