1st April 2022

A 5-year-old boy is brought into the Emergency Department by ambulance

A 5-year-old boy is brought into the Emergency Department by ambulance. Over the last few hours, his mother noticed his voice become hoarse and muffled, and he now has a continuous stridor and is drooling, but has no cough. On examination he is sat up in the trolley, leaning forward and appears extremely distressed and tachypnoeic. He has a temperature of 39.2°C. He has recently immigrated to the United Kingdom with his family and there is no record of his vaccination schedule.

Given the likely diagnosis, what would be the LEAST appropriate step in the acute management of this patient?

Select the SINGLE most appropriate option from the list below. Select ONE option only.