Chronic pulmonary disease in neonates after artificial ventilation: distribution of ventilation and pulmonary interstitial emphysema.

To determine pulmonary function abnormalities in patients with neonatal bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), we measured distribution of ventilation by nitrogen washout, minute and tidal volume, and arterial and alveolar gases in three groups of ten preterm infants with similar birth weights (mean = 1,340 g) and gestational ages (mean = 30.3 weeks). Infants in group A were never artificially ventilated, those in group B were ventilated but had no …