OBJECTIVETo study the clinical effectiveness and safety of nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) in the initial treatment of neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (NRDS) and the initial setting of NIPPV parameters.

METHODSOne hundred neonates with NRDS were divided into NIPPV group (n=50) and nasal continuous positive airway pressure (NCPAP) group (n=50). A randomized controlled study was conducted to compare the effectiveness of NIPPV versus NCPAP in the initial treatment of NRDS from the following aspects: reducing CO2 retention, improving oxygenation, reducing second endotracheal intubation and second use of pulmonary surfactant (PS), reducing the duration of invasive respiratory support, reducing the duration of oxygen use, and reducing the incidence of air leak, abdominal distension and ventilator-associated pneumonia.

RESULTSAfter 1 and 6 hours of noninvasive respiratory support, the NIPPV group was superior to the NCPAP group with respect to the reduction in CO2 retention and improvement in oxygenation (P<0.05); in addition, compared with the NCPAP group, the NIPPV group had significantly lower rates of second endotracheal intubation and second PS use, significantly shorter duration of invasive respiratory support and time of FiO2 >0.21, and significantly lower incidence of apnea and ventilator-associated pneumonia (P<0.05); there were no significant differences in the incidence of air leak and abdominal distention between the two groups.

CONCLUSIONSNIPPV is effective and safe in the initial treatment of NRDS and holds promise for clinical application.