Skip to content

Oral Corticosteroids' Role in Pediatric Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Oral Corticosteroids' Role in Pediatric Obstructive Sleep Apnea, a Non-Randomized Controlled Trial.

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT06917768
Enrollment
87
Registered
2025-04-08
Start date
2022-12-09
Completion date
2023-12-15
Last updated
2025-04-17

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Pediatric Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Keywords

Corticosteroids, Tonsillar hypertrophy, Pediatric OSA, Surgery, Coblation

Brief summary

This prospective interventional clinical trial (non-randomized) aims to evaluate oral corticosteroids' role as an alternative to surgery (gold-standard) in the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea in children. It also evaluates the evolution of symptoms' severity as well as any side effects linked to treatment. This prospective study included children aged between 18 months and 8 years who consulted the same pediatric ENT physician's clinic for OSA secondary to adenotonsillar hypertrophy with no other comorbidities. They were divided into 2 Groups. Children undergoing intracapsular adenotonsillectomy by Coblation™ (Group 1) were compared to those receiving oral prednisolone at a dose of 1mg/kg for 5 days and 1 month of intranasal corticosteroids (Group 2). The follow-up tools were the Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire (PSQ) score and the size of the tonsils (Brodsky classification) evaluated at 1, 3 and 6 months.

Interventions

PROCEDUREAdenotonsillectomy

Children undergoing adenoidectomy and intracapsular tonsillectomy using Coblation™, by the same surgeon at HDF.

DRUGPrednisolone

The second Group includes children whose parents have refused surgery despite informed understanding of the therapeutic algorithm of OSA. They received medical treatment consisting of a 1-month treatment with intranasal corticosteroids, coupled with a 5-day course of oral corticosteroids (prednisolone) at a safe dose of 1mg/kg.

Sponsors

Hotel Dieu de France Hospital
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE

Intervention model description

It is an interventional, prospective, non randomized controlled trial.

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Months to 8 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* All children aged between 18 months and 8 years diagnosed with OSAS secondary to adenotonsillar hypertrophy

Exclusion criteria

* Children under 18 months or over 8 years old * History of acute or chronic cardiorespiratory neuromuscular, or metabolic diseases * Congenital craniofacial anomalies * Chromosomal disorders * Epilepsy

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Evaluate the effectiveness of low-dose, short-term oral corticosteroids in the treatment of OSA in children.6 monthsIn Group 2, failure of medical treatment is defined by a persistence of apnea assessed by the clinician and parents and therefore a need for surgery within 6 months of follow-up, while therapeutic success reflects an improvement in symptoms and a disappearance of apnea documented by video, and therefore the absence of need for surgery after 6 months of follow-up.

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Evaluate the evolution of symptoms' severity6 monthsEvaluation at 1, 3 and 6 months of treatment (or surgery) the evolution of the OSA-related symptoms through the Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire. The Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire consists of 22 questions related to Pediatric OSA. The score is graded from 0 to 22 and is proportional to symptoms' severity (a higher score means a more severe sleep apnea).
Evaluate tonsils' size evolution with treatment6 monthsEvaluation at 1, 3 and 6 months of the evolution of tonsils' size through clinical evaluation using the Brodsky Score for tonsil size evaluation. Brodsky score can be 0, 1, 2, 3 or 4. A higher score reflects bigger tonsils.
Evaluate potential treatment-related side effects6 monthsEvaluation of any potential treatment-related side effect through clinical interrogation at 1,3 and 6 months.

Countries

Lebanon

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026