Methodology: 4/5
Usefulness: 1/5
Poonai N, et al. CMAJ. 2020 Nov 30;192(48):E1612-E1619.
Question and Methods: Randomized control trial assessing effect of hyoscine butylbromide (HBB) vs acetaminophen in nonspecific colicky pain in pediatric patients aged 8-17yo.
Findings: HBB produced >30mm reduction on the visual analogue pain scale in 45% of participants, and acetaminophen in 45.7%, at 80 minutes from time of administration. This study had some major limitations
Limitations: a small sample size, no placebo arm (as ethics did not approve this), and robust exclusion criteria greatly limiting generalizability.
Interpretation: This paper will likely not change practice for the majority of EM staff.
