Cystic Fibrosis treatment found to be ineffective in younger children

Saturday, September 28, 2013 by: Nate Curtis
Tags: cystic fibrosis, treatment, children

(NaturalNews) In a normal, healthy person, mucus is a wet, gooey substance that coats certain body organs and lubricates the inner lining of things such as your nose and throat. It is a necessary part of healthy body function. It not only keeps your organs and inner linings moist, but it also helps to protect them from becoming infected.

What is cystic fibrosis?

But in a person who has developed Cystic Fibrosis, the mucus that is generated is very much thicker and stickier. According to webmd.com, "Cystic fibrosis is an inherited disease that causes mucus in the body to become thick and sticky. This glue-like mucus builds up and causes problems in the lungs and the pancreas. People who have cystic fibrosis can have serious breathing problems and lung disease. They can also have problems with nutrition, digestion, growth, and development."

Not only does the mucus begin to create breathing difficulties, but it also acts as a perfect breeding ground for many unpleasant bacteria. These bacteria then proliferate serious lung infections which, in time, will do major harm to these essential organs.

There is no known cure for Cystic Fibrosis, and although treatments have improved in recent years, the mortality rate is still alarmingly high, especially in young children.

Treatments

One of the more recent treatments however has turned out to be quite ineffective in younger children. This treatment is known as hypertonic saline treatment, and recent studies have confirmed its ineffectiveness in children aged from 2 to 5 years old.

Inhaled hypertonic saline treatment does help children over the age of 6, but in an effort to postpone lung degeneration, early treatment is essential, and therefore many doctors have recommended that children be started on it from the age of 2 onwards. The trials lasted over a 48-week duration and involved some 321 young children half of whom received hypertonic (intensive) saline treatment, and half receiving isotonic (ordinary) saline treatment.

The trials clearly showed that young children between the ages of 2 to 5 years old gain no benefit whatsoever from the hypertonic treatment. This is mostly because most young children have not yet developed severe enough symptoms that would otherwise benefit from the stronger treatment.

In this particular instance, the trials have shown beyond doubt that the less severe form of saline treatment (isotonic) is clearly sufficient in younger children aged between 2 and 5 years of age.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.nih.gov/news/health/may2012/nhlbi-21.htm

http://www.cff.org/Display/dsp_ClinicalResearchHTML.cfm?id=4

About the author:
Nate Curtis has written dozens of health articles and is the author of the Amazingly Informative and Extremely Entertaining Free Special Health Report "It's Your Body, You Can Die If You Want To!" Check it out now at http://www.youcandieifyouwantto.com