Resident Physician Phoenix Children's Hospital Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Background: Severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia (sBPD) is a common chronic respiratory disease associated with prolonged ventilatory support in preterm infants beyond 36-week postmenstrual age (PMA). Infants with sBPD are at greater risk for long-term pulmonary and neurologic complications. Efforts to improve and optimize respiratory status and neurodevelopment in infants with BPD has become a priority for their care. Tracheostomy allows long-term respiratory support that may reduce work of breathing and promote growth of affected infants. Linear growth is considered to reflect an improved state of health in infants with sBPD. Currently, there is a paucity of evidence regarding the impact of linear growth on neurodevelopmental outcomes in infants who require prolonged invasive ventilation. This study will evaluate whether improved growth measures are related to neurodevelopmental outcomes in infants with severe BPD who have received a tracheostomy for chronic ventilatory support. Objective: The objective is to assess the correlation between linear growth z-score at 36-week PMA or admission and at discharge with Bayley Scales of Infants and Toddler Development (BSID) score post-discharge at 6-12 mo, 12-18 mo, and 18-24 mo for infants with severe BPD and tracheostomy. Design/Methods: This is a retrospective descriptive study of all infants born < 32-week gestation and admitted between January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2023, who developed grade 2 or 3 BPD and received tracheostomy during their NICU admission. The expected number of participants is 20-40. The study will compare patient clinical characteristics including respiratory severity score, weight (W), length (L), head circumference, and W/L z scores before tracheostomy (36-week PMA) and after tracheostomy (at discharge) and correlate linear growth with BSID scores post-discharge. The tasks remaining for this project include completion of a pending IRB submission, collection of data, and statistical analysis of results. Completion of the project is projected for February 2023.
