Health-care utilization and respiratory morbidities in preterm infants with pulmonary hypertension

OBJECTIVE: To assess health-care utilization and risk of respiratory morbidities in preterm infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) and pulmonary hypertension (PH). STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective data were obtained from subjects (n = 109) attending a BPD clinic. Subjects were stratified by the presence or absence of PH before and after 2 months of age. Analytic methods included t-tests, chi(2) tests and regression. RESULT: Subjects with BPD and PH present after 2 months of age were hospitalized for 2.2 months longer than those without PH (P = 0.02). These subjects were 4.5 times more likely to receive home supplemental oxygen or mechanical ventilation (P = 0.03). No difference in the risk of respiratory morbidities after initial hospital discharge was seen with PH. CONCLUSION: PH in preterm infants is associated with longer initial hospitalizations and a higher likelihood of requiring home respiratory support. This has implications for counseling families and reducing the medical, psychosocial, and economic burden of BPD and PH.