Practical considerations in the selection and use of pulmonary surfactant therapy for neonatal respiratory distress syndrome in the intensive care setting.

Pulmonary surfactant is the treatment of choice for neonatal respiratory distress syndrome, as it significantly reduces infant morbidity and mortality. Extensive clinical trials compare the surfactant products and their optimal usage, but often the practical administration issues are less frequently discussed. Herein, a panel of respiratory therapists and neonatal nurse practitioners share their experience regarding surfactant usage.

An open label comparison of calfactant and poractant alfa administration traits and impact on neonatal intensive care unit resources.

Objective: To compare calfactant (CA) and poractant alfa (PA) administration traits, short-term clinical responses, and resource use in the neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) setting.

Methods: An open label series of 277 (213 PA and 64 CA) infants was evaluated for 445 administrations. Registered respiratory therapists collected patient, surfactant administration, and postadministration clinical data.