Hypertonic saline inhalations (3% and 5%) may improve mucus flow in infants with acute bronchiolitis, improving pulmonary scores and reducing hospital stay.

A prospective, double-blind randomized control trial which measured (by bronchiolitis severity score) changes in 101 infants with moderate/severe bronchiolitis following inhaled nebulized 7% saline or 0.9% saline (both with epinephrine) indicates no significant benefits conferred by the 7% saline solution inhalation.

Pediatrics 

Guillaine-Barre (GBS) in a 10 month infant: A diagnostic challenge.

Guillaine-Barre syndrome encompasses a spectrum of acute immune-mediated polyneuropathies with several variant forms presenting with weakness in different limb and cranial nerve muscle distributions. It is frequently difficult to diagnose (only 25% of patients presenting to an ED are diagnosed on their first visit). Equally distributed by age and sex in childhood, it is the most common cause of an acute flaccid paralysis. 20% of patients remain severely disabled, with a mortality rate of up to 5%.

An interesting case presentation of a 10-month old infant with a history of a changing walking/crawling pattern and a history of a viral infection two weeks prior to onset (may occur up to 12 weeks after an infection. Ed) required 4 examinations before being diagnosed.

American Journal of Emergency Medicine