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Pulmonary function at follow-up of very preterm infants from the United Kingdom oscillation study

Mark R Thomas1, Gerrard F Rafferty, Elizabeth S Limb

  • 1Department of Child Health, Guy's King's & St. Thomas' Medical School, King's College Hospital, London, UK.

American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine
|December 25, 2003
PubMed

Insights

High-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) did not improve pulmonary function in very preterm infants compared to conventional ventilation (CV). Follow-up assessments showed similar lung function outcomes for both ventilation methods.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatology
  • Pediatric Pulmonology
  • Critical Care Medicine

Background:

  • Premature infants often experience abnormal pulmonary function in childhood after neonatal respiratory support.
  • Conventional ventilation (CV) is a common method for supporting premature infants' breathing.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) leads to better pulmonary function in very preterm infants compared to CV.
  • To test the hypothesis that HFOV offers superior long-term lung function outcomes.

Main Methods:

  • A randomized controlled trial (UK Oscillation Study) involving 76 very preterm infants (mean gestational age 26.4 weeks).
  • Infants were assigned to either HFOV or CV and underwent pulmonary function testing between 11 and 14 months corrected age.
  • Measurements included functional residual capacity (FRC) via plethysmography and helium dilution, and airway resistance.

Main Results:

  • No significant differences in pulmonary function were observed between infants receiving HFOV and those receiving CV.
  • Mean FRC values (ml/kg) were similar: 26.5 (HFOV) vs. 26.9 (CV) by plethysmography, and 23.5 (HFOV) vs. 24.1 (CV) by helium dilution.
  • Airway resistance (kPa·s/L) and respiratory rate (breaths/min) were also comparable between the two ventilation groups.

Conclusions:

  • Early use of HFOV in very preterm infants does not appear to provide an advantage over CV regarding pulmonary function at follow-up.
  • The findings suggest that current ventilation strategies may not significantly alter long-term lung function trajectories in this vulnerable population.

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