Infants requiring prolonged mechanical ventilation develop chronic respirat
ory problems. In addition to abnormalities in the lung parenchyma, airway i
njury with subsequent dysfunction is a hallmark of bronchopulmonary dysplas
ia, Developmental immaturity, in addition to ventilator-induced injury, pre
dispose infants to significant limitations in overall pulmonary function. T
his review will focus on basic physiologic mechanics and clinical assessmen
t of airways to elucidate the contribution of developmental and injury indu
ced changes in the functional characteristics of airways.