Early weaning from oxygen therapy in African children with severe pneumonia

Maitland, K., Giallongo, E., Hamaluba, M., Alaroker, F., Opoka, R. O., Tagoola, A., Nalwanga, D., Nabawanuka, E., Okiror, W., Nakuya, M., Aromut, D., Williams, T. N., Thomas, K., Harrison, D. A., Mouncey, P., Bush, A., Fraser, J. F., Rowan, K., Olupot-Olupot, P., Kiguli, S. BMC Medicine DOI: 10.1186/s12916-025-04178-9

Abstract: In Africa, severe pneumonia remains the major cause of paediatric hospitalisation, resulting in high requirements for oxygen therapy. Adequate supplies of oxygen are key challenges for many low-resource hospitals. The World Health Organization manual for oxygen therapy advises 2–3 days of oxygen therapy for pneumonia and recommends against early weaning, even in the absence of hypoxaemia. Few data support this recommendation. We describe the oxygen use and timing of weaning in the COAST trial of oxygen therapy (ISRCTN15622505).