• Cho-Yi Huang, Hsin-Chung Huang, Mei-Huei Chen, Tso-Ting Lai, Hung-Chieh Chou, Chien-Yi Chen, Ting-An Yen, Wellington V Cardoso, and Po-Nien Tsao.
• Department of Pediatrics, National Taiwan University College of Medicine and Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
• Chest. 2022 Dec 1; 162 (6): 132813371328-1337.

BackgroundIntravitreal bevacizumab (IVB), an anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) antibody, is a widely adopted treatment for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). Although animal studies have demonstrated that IVB inhibits alveologenesis in neonatal rat lung, the clinical influence of IVB on respiratory outcomes has not been studied.Research QuestionDoes IVB affect the respiratory outcome in preterm infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia?Study Design And MethodsWe retrospectively assessed very low birth weight (VLBW) preterm infants admitted to our neonatal ICU between January 2016 and June 2021. Furthermore, we evaluated the short-term respiratory outcomes after IVB therapy in VLBW preterm infants requiring ventilatory support at 36 weeks' postmenstrual age (PMA).ResultsOne hundred seventy-four VLBW preterm infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia were recruited. Eighty-eight infants showed ROP onset before being ventilator free, and 78 infants received a diagnosis of the most severe ROP before being ventilator free. Among them, 32 received a diagnosis with type 1 ROP and received IVB treatment. After adjusting for gestational age, birth body weight, and baseline respiratory status, we discovered that IVB is associated significantly with prolonged ventilatory support and a lower likelihood of becoming ventilator free (hazard ratio, 0.53; P = .03).InterpretationIVB may have a short-term respiratory adverse effect in patients requiring ventilatory support at 36 weeks' PMA. Therefore, long-term follow-up for respiratory outcomes may be considered in VLBW infants who receive IVB treatment.Copyright © 2022 American College of Chest Physicians. All rights reserved.

18 keywords...

hide…