Surfactant delivery via thin catheter in preterm infants: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Surfactant administration via a thin catheter (STC) is an alternative to surfactant administration post endotracheal intubation in preterm infants with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS); however, the benefits particularly in infants <29 weeks' gestation and the neurodevelopmental outcomes remain unclear. Thus, our objective was to systematically review and meta-analyze the efficacy and safety of STC compared to intubation for surfactant or nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) in preterm infants with RDS.

Medical databases were searched until December 2022 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing STC compared to controls that included intubation for surfactant or nCPAP in preterm infants with RDS. The primary outcome was bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) at 36 weeks gestation in survivors. Subgroup analysis was conducted comparing STC to controls in infants < 29 weeks' gestation. The Cochrane risk of bias (ROB) tool was used and certainty of evidence (CoE) was rated according to GRADE.

Twenty-six RCTs of 3349 preterm infants, in which half of the studies had low risk of bias, were included. STC decreased the risk of BPD in survivors compared to controls (17 RCTs; N = 2408; relative risk (RR) = 0.66; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.51 to 0.85; number needed to treat for an additional beneficial outcome (NNTB) = 13; CoE: moderate). In infants < 29 weeks' gestation, STC significantly reduced the risk of BPD compared to controls (6 RCTs, N = 980; RR 0.63; 95% CI 0.47 to 0.85; NNTB = 8; CoE: moderate).

Compared to controls, STC may be a more efficacious and safe method of surfactant delivery in preterm infants with RDS, including infants < 29 weeks' gestation.