Plasma endothelin-1 like immunoreactivity levels in neonates.
We attempted to determine the plasma endothelin-1-like immunoreactivity (ET-1) levels and to evaluate its physiological significance in 29 neonates: 5 with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS), 3 with transient tachypnoea of the newborn (TTN), 4 with neonatal asphyxia, 5 with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) following RDS, 7 healthy preterm infants and 5 healthy full-term infants. Plasma ET-1 levels in infants with RDS were significantly higher than those in healthy full-term infants through the 1st week of life. Plasma ET-1 levels in infants with neonatal asphyxia were high on the first 2 days of life and then gradually decreased to those of healthy full-term infants. Plasma levels in infants with TTN were the same as those in healthy full-term infants. Plasma ET-1 levels in infants with BPD were high when compared with those in healthy preterm infants during the first 2 months of life. This study showed that plasma levels were markedly elevated for a long time in the infants with respiratory distress. We speculate that plasma ET-1 may be a specific marker for pulmonary endothelium injury in infants with respiratory distress.
Kojima
T
T
Department of Paediatrics, Kansai Medical University, Osaka, Japan.
Isozaki-Fukuda
Y
Y
Takedatsu
M
M
Ono
A
A
Hirata
Y
Y
Kobayashi
Y
Y
D001238:Asphyxia Neonatorum / Q000097:blood*; D001997:Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia / Q000097:blood; D016232:Endothelins / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D007235:Infant, Premature, Diseases / Q000097:blood*; D012127:Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Newborn / Q000097:blood; D012131:Respiratory Insufficiency / Q000097:blood*
D016232:Endothelins