Measurement of lung oxygenation by near‐infrared spectroscopy in preterm infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia

Abstract Introduction It has recently been reported that it is possible to monitor lung oxygenation (rSO 2 L) by near‐infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in preterm infants with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). Thus, our aim was to assess the possibility of monitoring rSO 2 L in infants with evolving and established bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) and to evaluate if rSO 2 L correlates with BPD severity and other oxygenation indices. Methods We studied 40 preterm infants with gestational age ≤30 weeks at risk for BPD. Patients were continuously studied for 2 h by NIRS at 28 ± 7 days of life and 36 weeks ± 7 days of postmenstrual age. Results rSO 2 L was similar at the first and second NIRS recordings (71.8 ± 7.2 vs. 71.4 ± 4.2%) in the overall population, but it was higher in infants with mild than in those with moderate‐to‐severe BPD at both the first (73.3 ± 3.1 vs. 71.2 ± 3.2%, p = .042) and second (72.3 ± 2.8 vs. 70.5 ± 2.8, p = .049) NIRS recording. A rSO 2 L cutoff value of 71.6% in the first recording was associated with a risk for moderate‐to‐severe BPD with a sensitivity of 66% and a specificity of 60%. Linear regression analysis demonstrated a significant positive relationship between rSO 2 L and SpO 2 /FiO 2 ratio ( p = .013) and a/APO 2 ( p = .004). Conclusions Monitoring of rSO 2 L by NIRS in preterm infants with evolving and established BPD is feasible and safe. rSO 2 L was found to be higher in infants with mild BPD, and predicts the risk for developing moderate‐to‐severe BPD and correlates with other indices of oxygenation.