Fifty to 60% of children admitted to a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) are placed under invasive mechanical ventilation (MV) at least once during their stay. After extubation, about 30% of these patients will experience respiratory distress due to upper airway obstruction (RDUAO), and about one-third of these cases will require re-intubation. Treating this RDUAO extends the length of stay in the PICU. Pre-extubation corticosteroid therapy has been validated in adults as a preventive treatment for the occurrence of RDUAO. However, the lack of robust data in pediatrics has not allowed for a consensus on the benefit of its use in children on MV in the PICU. The investigators propose to conduct a randomized, multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled study evaluating the effect of intravenous dexamethasone (IV-DXM) before extubation on the incidence of RDUAO in children.
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Cumulative incidence of respiratory distress due to upper airway obstruction (RDUAO)
Timeframe: Within 48 hours post-extubation