Bubble Continuous Positive Airway Pressure for Children With Severe Pneumonia in Mali, Africa

This study is being conducted in Mali, Africa. Pneumonia is a respiratory infection of the lungs caused by bacteria or virus. Some children can develop signs of severe pneumonia and as a result, have difficulty breathing and low levels of oxygen in the blood. In some cases this can progress to death. Patients with signs of severe pneumonia require admission to the hospital for treatment and the treatment includes delivery of oxygen. Currently, in the hospital, oxygen is available for delivery by nasal cannula to children. In this case, oxygen is given through a small plastic tube which delivers oxygen through the nose. However, the amount of oxygen that can be given is limited because of the size of the tube and the amount of oxygen that can go through. However, a new device known as the bubble CPAP machine delivers oxygen through the nose in a way that helps the airways to stay open. This is known to provide better support to children less than 1 year of age who have difficulty breathing with signs of severe pneumonia. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of bubble CPAP in Children up to 5 years of age with with signs of severe pneumonia.