[Complications in newborns treated with nasal CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) in second level neonatal...

After the introduction of Nasal Continuous Positive Airways Pressure (nCPAP) in a neonatal intensive care unit, the incidence of complications and outcomes of newborns was explored. The clinical and nursing records of 64 newborns treated with O2 and Hood's cuff (January 1996-June 1999) were compared to those of 68 patients treated with nCPAP (July 1999-July 2002). Newborns < 32 weeks, with congenital abnormalities and major myocardiopathies were excluded. The two groups were comparable for the main characteristics. Newborns treated with nCPAP needed less intubations (7 vs 14, p 0.004) and had less transferrals to more specialised structures (12 vs 26, p 0.001). The number of complications is comparable with the exception of a larger number of desaturations in the nCPAP group (20 vs 5, p 0.001) that anyhow, did not require resuscitation. The nCPAP allowed a reduction of the number of intubations and therefore newborns could be cared for in our centre, thus reducing the disadvantage of a transferral to a more specialised centre. This advantage, associated to the comparable number of complications, may be attributable to the short duration of the treatment but also to the attentive and appropriate nursing care.