Impact of Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia on Early Life Respiratory Morbidity in Children With Respiratory Distress Syndrome

Abstract

Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) can cause respiratory morbidity beyond the neonatal period. We aimed to analyze the influence of BPD on childhood lower respiratory illness (LRI) and asthma among patients diagnosed with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). This case–control study analyzed data between 2002 and 2015 from a nationwide database. We included 55,066 children with RDS. Two-year LRI and asthma at ages 3 and 5 were assessed. Readmission for LRIs within 2 years of birth occurred in 53.9% and 37.9% of the BPD (n=9,470) and non-BPD (n=45,596) cases, respectively. In the BDP group, the median number of hospitalizations, mechanical ventilation and oxygen use rates were significantly higher, while the hospitalization duration was significantly longer (P<0.001 for all). The relative risk of BPD was 1.42 (1.39–1.45) on total readmission and 6.53 (5.96–7.15) on intensive care unit readmission. Asthma prevalences were significantly higher in BPD group (57.6% vs. 48.9% at age 3 and 44.3% vs. 38.2% at age 5, P<0.001). In children with RDS, BPD could affect repetitive and worse LRI as an independent risk factor for respiratory morbidity during the first 2 years of life. BPD may also be a crucial risk factor for asthma in preschoolers.