X-ray image of respiratory distress syndrome in newborns with low and extremely low birth weight

Introduction. Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) is characterized by immaturity of lung tissue, surfactant deficiency and is a common cause of mortality in premature infants. X-ray is the main method for determining the causes and severity of respiratory failure in newborns.

Purpose. Systematization of the results of X-ray examination of the lungs of newborns with varying degrees of prematurity, compared with autopsy data.

Materials and methods. The analysis of X-ray data and sectional material of 32 premature infants with low and extremely low body weight who died with clinical manifestations of RDS was performed.

Research results. The article provides a comparative analysis of various types of radiological changes in the lungs (reticulo-nodular pulmonary pattern (n=10), cellular deformity of the pulmonary pattern (n=5), «air bronchogram» (n=20), «air leakage» syndrome (n=6), focal-confluent shadows/infiltrative-like foci of darkening (n=9)) and autopsy results of premature newborns.

Conclusion. The greatest number of coincidences of radiological and histological data took place in BPD (80%), the smallest — in pulmonary hemorrhages (20%). The coincidence of conclusions for pneumonia and GM disease is 58–56%, respectively. Difficulty in the differential diagnosis of the X-ray picture of the lungs in low birth-weight infants lies in the frequent combination of pathological conditions. Respiratory failure with a wide range of pathological changes in the lungs developed in 15 (53,6%) newborns in the absence of criteria for surfactant insufficiency against the background of respiratory support.

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