The New England journal of medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Early CPAP versus surfactant in extremely preterm infants.
There are limited data to inform the choice between early treatment with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) and early surfactant treatment as the initial support for extremely-low-birth-weight infants. ⋯ The results of this study support consideration of CPAP as an alternative to intubation and surfactant in preterm infants. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00233324.)
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Editorial Comment
CPAP and low oxygen saturation for very preterm babies?
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Target ranges of oxygen saturation in extremely preterm infants.
Previous studies have suggested that the incidence of retinopathy is lower in preterm infants with exposure to reduced levels of oxygenation than in those exposed to higher levels of oxygenation. However, it is unclear what range of oxygen saturation is appropriate to minimize retinopathy without increasing adverse outcomes. ⋯ A lower target range of oxygenation (85 to 89%), as compared with a higher range (91 to 95%), did not significantly decrease the composite outcome of severe retinopathy or death, but it resulted in an increase in mortality and a substantial decrease in severe retinopathy among survivors. The increase in mortality is a major concern, since a lower target range of oxygen saturation is increasingly being advocated to prevent retinopathy of prematurity. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00233324.)
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Comparison of shunt types in the Norwood procedure for single-ventricle lesions.
The Norwood procedure with a modified Blalock-Taussig (MBT) shunt, the first palliative stage for single-ventricle lesions with systemic outflow obstruction, is associated with high mortality. The right ventricle-pulmonary artery (RVPA) shunt may improve coronary flow but requires a ventriculotomy. We compared the two shunts in infants with hypoplastic heart syndrome or related anomalies. ⋯ In children undergoing the Norwood procedure, transplantation-free survival at 12 months was better with the RVPA shunt than with the MBT shunt. After 12 months, available data showed no significant difference in transplantation-free survival between the two groups. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00115934.)