Emphysema In Adulthood May Be Linked To Premature Birth

Main Category: Respiratory / Asthma
Also Included In: Pediatrics / Children's Health
Article Date: 29 Jul 2008 - 0:00 PDT

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Babies born extremely prematurely may be left with lung abnormalities in adulthood, such as emphysema, Australian researchers have found. The study, funded by the Raine Foundation, followed up babies born up to four months premature in the 1980s and weighing as little as 635 g. All of the young adults taking part in the study had abnormal CT scans of their lungs. 84% had areas of emphysema and 75% had abnormal lung function tests, the researchers report in the upcoming issue of the European Respiratory Journal (ERJ).

Due to major improvements in neonatal care since the 1980s, an ever increasing number of babies are surviving extreme prematurity, and many have respiratory difficulties as infants. The first babies to benefit from this improved care are only now reaching adulthood. "This study reinforces the importance of stopping, or preferably never taking up, cigarette smoking, particularly if there is a history of preterm birth," Daniel Chambers of the Prince Charles Hospital and Andrew Wilson of the Princess Margaret and Royal Perth Hospitals in Australia said. "Overall, most of the subjects in this study had good, if not entirely normal, lung function despite having a very difficult time as babies."

The authors stress that the results are preliminary and much larger studies are required before accurate predictions can be made about how an individual baby's lungs will develop.

Nevertheless, Chambers states, "I think we can provide some reassurance for individuals and the parents of babies being born prematurely today that despite the ventilator, and then the 24-hour-a- day oxygen even when they've finally made it home, your baby has a great chance of having good lung health in adulthood."

Since the adults in this study were born there have been further improvements in neonatal care, so hopefully outcomes will be even better in the future.
The researchers are now conducting a larger study in Queensland and Western Australia.

Title of Original Article
Emphysema in young adult survivors of moderate-to-severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia
European Respiratory Journal (Erj), Vol. 32, No 2

The European Respiratory Journal is the peer-reviewed scientific publication of the European Respiratory Society (more than 8,000 specialists in lung diseases and respiratory medicine in Europe, the United States and Australia).

European Respiratory Journal