| Summary: | Purpose: One of the respiratory supports in acute respiratory failure (ARF) is high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) oxygen therapy,
which is being increasingly used in this study. We aimed to evaluate the patients with ARF who received HFNC oxygen therapy
in the pediatric intensive care unit (ICU).
Materials and Methods: The study was done retrospectively in 104 patients who were admitted to the pediatric ICU and received
HFNC oxygen therapy between January 2015 and December 2017.
Results: The median age of the patients participating in the study was 5 months. The most common cause of hospitalization was lower
respiratory disease (97.1%), and 52.9% of the patients had type 1 respiratory failure. The median length of stay in the pediatric ICU
was 7 days, while the median duration of HFNC oxygen therapy was 48 hours. In patients who were intubated during HFNC oxygen
therapy (28.8%), the proportions of having a chronic disease and chronic lung disease were significantly higher than those who were
not intubated (p=0.001, p=0.033, respectively). In terms of complications, nasal skin damage (8.7%) and pneumothorax (1.9%) were
developed. The proportions of chronic diseases and congenital heart disease of the patients who were admitted to pediatric ICU and
died after HFNC oxygen therapy were significantly higher than the survivors (p=0.043, p=0.003, respectively).
Conclusion: The results of HFNC oxygen therapy, which is being increasingly used in the treatment of respiratory failure in
children, are generally satisfactory. However, due to possible complications, close monitoring is required during the application.
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