TREATMENT OF RESPIRATORY-FAILURE DUE TO RESPIRATORY SYNCYTIAL VIRUS PNEUMONIA WITH NATURAL SURFACTANT

We describe two infants suffering from severe pneumonia caused by resp iratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection and needing mechanical Ventila tion with both high ventilator settings and a high fraction of inspire d oxygen. The severity of the respiratory failure and the possibility of decreased and/or altered surfactant production led us to treat thes e infants with intratracheal instillation of natural surfactant. This resulted in an improvement of lung compliance and a decrease in the am ount of oxygen required to maintain acceptable oxygen saturations. Int ratracheal surfactant instillation might, therefore, be useful in the treatment of severe RSV pneumonia. (C) 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.