Respiratory management and bronchopulmonary dysplasia in extremely preterm infants: a comparison of practice between centres in Oxford and Melbourne

Objective: Considerable variation in the care of extremely low gestational age infants (ELGAN) contributes to the variation in incidence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). We compared management and outcomes of two neonatal centres with different respiratory support strategies. Study design: Retrospective cohort study of infants <28 weeks gestational age treated at two units in Australia and the UK between 2015 and 2017. Result: Of 492 infants, the overall incidence of BPD for extremely preterm infants was 62.20% and was similar across both sites (64.84% at Monash vs. 60.65% at Oxford). Independent predictors for the development of BPD or mortality included the days on mechanical ventilation (MV, adjusted OR 1.13, 95% Cl 1.07–1.19) and use of inhaled nitric oxide (adjusted OR 13.42, 95% Cl 1.75–103.28). Conclusion: Primary choice of non-invasive respiratory support had no significant impact on BPD development. Duration of MV and using nitric oxide were independent predictors for death or BPD.