| Salbutamol | Placebo | |
| No of patients | 9 | 13 |
| Age (y) | 69.3 (9) | 52.4 (14)* |
| Male | 6 | 6 |
| Aetiology | ||
| Direct lung injury | 3 | 7 |
| Indirect lung injury | 6 | 6 |
| Pao2:Fio2 ratio (kPa) | 16.1 (7) | 14.3 (5) |
| Lung injury score | 2.8 (0.7) | 3.0 (0.5) |
| APACHE II | 26.4 (7) | 20.7 (6) |
| SOFA score | 13.7 (3) | 13.1 (3) |
Data shown are mean (SD).
*p<0.05.
APACHE, acute physiology and chronic health evaluation; Pao2:Fio2, arterial oxygen tension:fractional inspired oxygen; SOFA, sequential organ failure assessment.