Using lung dead space and inhaled nitric oxide to guide care for children with ARDS
Official title: Dead Space and Inhaled Nitric Oxide in Pediatric Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
Funded at Children's Hospital of Los Angeles · NIH-11195527 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Seeing if measuring lung 'dead space' and using inhaled nitric oxide can help doctors treat children with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Children's Hospital of Los Angeles NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Los Angeles, United States) |
| Project start | September 20, 2024 |
| Project end | August 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $784,784 |
| NIH project number | 5R01HL173488-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11195527 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children diagnosed with pediatric ARDS who are receiving mechanical ventilation and have routine capnography and blood gas monitoring would be the ideal candidates.
✕Less likely to help
Children without ARDS, those not on ventilatory support, or patients whose illness is not driven by pulmonary perfusion problems may not benefit from this approach.
What this research studies
If your child joins, doctors will use routine bedside monitoring (capnography and blood gases) to measure lung 'dead space' (AVDSf) and track how it relates to outcomes. The team will compare dead space measurements with standard oxygenation tests and examine whether children with higher dead space respond differently to inhaled nitric oxide. The work builds on earlier single-center findings that AVDSf links more strongly to mortality than oxygenation alone and aims to find a simple, real-time marker to personalize therapy. The ultimate aim is to identify which children might benefit from targeted treatments during early pediatric ARDS.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could help doctors identify which children with ARDS are most likely to benefit from inhaled nitric oxide or other targeted treatments, potentially lowering the risk of death.
How similar studies have gone: Single-center studies have shown that AVDSf is more strongly linked to mortality than oxygenation measures, but using dead space to guide inhaled nitric oxide treatment is a newer approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Children's Hospital of Los Angeles
Los Angeles, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Bhalla, Anoopindar — Children's Hospital of Los Angeles
- Study coordinator: Bhalla, Anoopindar
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.