• Ammar Mohammed Haidar Shehadeh.
• University of Southampton, Health sciences department, Neonatology, Southampton, UK.
• J. Matern. Fetal. Neonatal. Med. 2021 Sep 1; 34 (17): 2900-2909.

BackgroundNoninvasive high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (NHFOV) keeps the lung open with add-on effective rhythmic oscillations in addition to allowing spontaneous breathing. This review aims at reconstructing the different pieces of available research articles and evidence into a more solid collective evidence for NHFOV in preterm infants with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS).MethodsA thorough systemic search was conducted in Medline, Embase, Web of Science, Google Scholar, CINAHL, and Cochrane. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on preterm infants with RDS comparing NHFOV with nasal continuous positive airway pressure (NCPAP) in terms of PCO2 change, need for ventilation, duration of respiratory support, mortality air leak, or BPD were included. Data quality assessment and meta-analyses were carried out.ResultsFive RCTs involving 270 preterm infants included in the review. PCO2 relatively decreased on NHFOV (MD = 3.84, confidence interval (CI) 7.32-0.35, p = .03). On the other hand, relative risk (RR) of intubation was unquestionably decreased with NHFOV in comparison with NCPAP (RR  =  0.43, CI 0.25-0.75, p = .003) without statistical heterogeneity I2 = 0%. Although the risk of mortality was less in NHFOV, the difference was statistically insignificant (RR = 0.72, CI 0.24-2.18, p = .56). Other outcomes reported in single studies only. Duration of respiratory support was significantly shorter in NHFOV compared with NCPAP (37.35 ± 8.96 versus 49.77 ± 10.33, p = .009), whereas air leak and BPD were reported in very few cases without a significant difference between the two interventions.ConclusionsNHFOV improved the PCO2 elimination and decreased the risk of intubation without a significant change in mortality compared with NCPAP.

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