Clinics in perinatology
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Clinics in perinatology · Mar 1998
ReviewVolutrauma, PaCO2 levels, and neurodevelopmental sequelae following assisted ventilation.
Today it is essential that we define care practices in neonatology that not only increase survival but also produce optimal pulmonary and neurodevelopmental outcomes for our patients. Assisted ventilatory care continues to be influential at all three levels. In this article, the authors discuss current understanding of the possible mechanisms for pulmonary and neurologic injury, or benefits associated with ventilation at both low and high PaCO2 levels, as well as evidence for neurodevelopmental sequelae with various ventilator strategies.
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Patient-triggered ventilation is a relatively recent development in neonatal mechanical ventilation. Advances in microprocessor-based technology, transducers, and monitoring have enabled patient-driven ventilator control and synchronization of mechanical ventilation with patient effort. The novelty of the newer ventilatory techniques has generated several controversies that remain to be resolved. Among these are signal detection and transduction, the optimal ventilatory modes, and weaning during patient-triggered ventilation.
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In the delivery room, pediatricians are frequently required to make immediate decisions about resuscitating infants. Is the baby too small, too immature, or too asphyxiated to be revived? To achieve the best outcome, resuscitation once initiated, must be performed expeditiously, safely, and with the utmost diligence. Not all the tools and medications have undergone the intense scrutiny that might otherwise be assumed. In this article, resuscitation topics are discussed and recommendation offered.
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Conventional mechanical ventilation continues to be the standard mode of support for neonates with respiratory failure. Controversies regarding the selection of optimal ventilatory strategies still abound. ⋯ Principles of gas exchange, pulmonary mechanics and control of breathing are reviewed in the context of their relevance during mechanical ventilation. The application of these concepts to the ventilatory strategies for the management of infants with respiratory distress is presented, and current controversies are emphasized.
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Clinics in perinatology · Mar 1998
ReviewExtracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Controversies in selection of patients and management.
This article reviews controversies associated with the selection of patients for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) and their management. Although there has been a raging debate regarding the use of ECMO in the management of hypoxic respiratory failure in the near-term and term newborn, the authors maintain that this issue is resolved and that ECMO is now a standard of care and should be offered to every neonate who is likely to fail conventional treatment. It is the authors' contention, that there is no apparent increase in morbidity associated with the use of ECMO and that better results might be achieved if ECMO were employed earlier in the patient's course, before hypoxic-ischemia organ damage occurs.