Intravenous aminophylline therapy for asthma. A comparison of two methods of administration in children

P. Goldberg, F. Leffert, M. Gonzalez, L. Gogenola and G. O. Zerbe

Eleven asthmatic children were given intravenous aminophylline by two methods of administration: a 6 mg/kg loading dose followed by a 1.4 mg/kg/hr continuous infusion, or a bolus of 4 mg/kg given every four hours. Expiratory flow rates (forced expiratory volume at 1 s and expiratory flow at 50% of vital capacity) were recorded at intervals for 24 hours with each regimen. Although the intermittent administration of aminophylline produced a substantial improvement, there was a significantly greater pulmonary response to continuous infusion.