Background Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is common in very premature infants. Pharmacological closure of PDA with indomethacin, a prostaglandin inhibitor, has remained the mainstay of treatment in premature infants over the last three decades. Intravenous ibuprofen was recently shown to be as effective and to have fewer adverse reaction in preterm infants. If equally effective, then oral ibuprofen for PDA closure would have several important advantages over the intravenous route. This study was designed to assess the efficacy and safety of oral ibuprofen and intravenous ibuprofen for the early pharmacological treatment of PDA in LBW preterm infants with respiratory distress syndrome. Methods A randomized, single-blinded, controlled study was performed on premature neonates at the neonatal care unit of the University Hospital for Obstetrics and Gynecology”Koco Gliozheni”, Tirana, Albania, from January 2010 to December 2012. The study enrolled 68 preterm infants with gestational age between 28-32 weeks, birth weight ≤ 2000 g, postnatal age 48-96 h, and had echocardiographically confirmed significant PDA. The preterm infants received either intravenous or oral ibuprofen randomly as an initial dose of 10 mg/kg, followed by 5 mg/kg at 24 and 48 h. After the first dose of treatment in both groups, echocardiographic evaluation was performed, to determine the need for a second or third dose. The rate of ductal closure, adverse effects, complications, and the patient’s clinical course were recorded. Results All patients were born after 28 until 32 weeks’ gestation. 36 patients were treated with oral ibuprofen and 32 with intravenous ibuprofen in this period. After the first course of the treatment, the PDA closed in 30 (83.3%) of the patients assigned to the oral ibuprofen group versus 23 (71.8%) of those enrolled in the intravenous ibuprofen group (p = 0.355). There was no difference between treatment groups in demographics or baseline renal function. In the evaluation of renal tolerance, none of the patients had oliguria. There were no significant differences with respect to complications during the stay. Conclusions In low birth weight infants, the rate of early ductal closure with oral ibuprofen is at least as good as with the intravenous route. Oral ibuprofen is associated with fewer adverse effects, Alketa Hoxha, Ermira Kola, Numila Kuneshka, Eduard Tushe, and Literatura
Určení prahu viability je výchozím bodem pro zvažování léčebného postupu. Kromě stupně zralosti plodu a jeho zdravotního stavu závisí viabilita na vývoji medicínské technologie. Je podmíněna také sociálně-ekonomickými a kulturními faktory. Hranice viability z hlediska možnosti narodit se živě a přežít leží mezi 22.-24. týdnem. Dohoda odborné komunity o poskytování aktivní péče vychází z pravděpodobnosti přežití a přežití bez závažného postižení. Ve vyspělých zemích je resuscitace a intenzivní péče od 26. gestačního týdne většinou povinná, protože děti narozené v tomto týdnu mají vysoké šance na přežití bez závažného postižení a dobrou kvalitu života. Období 22.-25. gestačního týdne je označováno jako šedá zóna, kdy výsledky péče jsou nejisté a předem nepredikovatelné. Závisí nejen na gestačním stáří, ale i na hmotnosti, pohlaví, četnosti těhotenství, místu porodu a indukci zralosti plic plodu kortikoidy. Jsou ovlivněny přístupem k péči, postoji lékařů i rodičů. Předpověď signifikantně mění přežití prvního týdne. Při rozhodování o způsobu péče je třeba vycházet z komplexního pojetí viability. Vytvoření standardů založených pouze na gestačním stáří, které často nejsme schopni přesně stanovit, by neodpovídalo medicínské i etické složitosti situace a bránilo v individuálním rozhodování., Determining the threshold of viability is the initial point in considering medical treatment. Viability depends - aside from the level of maturity of the fetus and its health condition – on the advancement of medical technology. Its quality is also based upon given socio-economical and cultural factors. The threshold of viability in regard of the possibility to be born alive and survive lies between the 22-24 weeks. An expert agreement on providing active care is based upon the probability of survival and survival without serious disability. Resuscitation and intensive care from the 26 weeks of gestation is usually mandatory in developed countries because infants born at this week have a very high chance of survival without severe disabilities and with good quality of life. The 22-25 week of gestation is known as the grey zone, during which the results of care are uncertain and unpredictable in advance. However, they depend not only on gestational age but on birth weight, sex, multiple gestation, place of delivery, and induction of lung maturity with corticosteroids. They are influenced by the caregivers approach and attitude. Surviving the first week changes the prediction significantly. It is essential to precede our decision-making according to a comprehensive concept of viability. Creating standards based entirely on gestational age which we cannot determine accurately would not meet the medical and ethical complexity of the situation and would prevent us from individual deliberation., Blanka Zlatohlávková, and Literatura 31