[Acute bronchiolitis: fundamentals of a rational protocol].

Bronchiolitis is the most frequent respiratory tract disease in the first 2 years of life. It occurs in epidemics in winter and spring. Etiology is viral and the most frequent causative agent is respiratory syncytial virus. In most patients the disease is benign and self-limiting and only occasionally requires hospitalization. In daily clinical practice, one of the problems most frequently faced by the pediatrician is the lack of agreement on the correct pharmacological treatment of bronchiolitis, as well as the absence of simple, or standardized, clinical scores with which to diagnose severity. The present study provides a review of the medical literature on the most commonly used clinical scores and the therapeutic efficacy of the different drugs employed. A protocol for the practical management of bronchiolitis is provided. The use of inhaled adrenaline in the treatment of moderate-to-severe bronchiolitis in hospitalized infants, as well as oxygen and fluid therapy as support measures, are recommended.