Electrostatic charge on spacer devices and salbutamol response in young children.

Electrostatic charge on plastic spacer devices may affect the efficacy of inhaled drugs, but its consequences have never been evaluated in asthmatic children with airflow limitation. At the end of a positive metacholine challenge, 64 children (51.3+/-12.9 months, 32 boys, specific airway resistance (SRaw) 257.1+/-56.7% and forced expiratory volume in 1s (FEV(1)) 64.2+/-17.9% of the predicted value) inhaled one puff of hydrofluoroalkane-134a (HFA-134a) salbutamol (Ventoline((R))), and 15min later two other puffs (total dose of 300 microgram), delivered through either a new static Babyhaler((R)) (n=21), a detergent-coated, reduced static, Babyhaler((R)) (n=20), or a metal NES-Spacer((R)) (n=23) equipped with facemask. SRaw and FEV(1) were measured after each treatment and compared between groups by a Kruskal-Wallis test. The first 100 microgram salbutamol induced a 151.7+/-43.9% decrease in SRaw and a 19.9+/-10.6% increase in FEV(1). Additional 200 microgram salbutamol allowed a supplementary decrease of 35.1+/-25.7% in SRaw and increase of 12.1+/-11.8% in FEV(1), without significant difference between the spacer devices. Electrostatic charge on spacer devices does not affect bronchodilation with HFA-134a salbutamol in metacholine-challenged pre-school children. This could be in part explained by the use of supramaximal doses of salbutamol.