Development of Ventilatory Response to Transient Hypercapnia and Hypercapnic Hypoxia in Term Infants
0031-3998/04/5502-0302 PEDIATRIC RESEARCH Vol. 55, No. 2, 2004 Copyright © 2004 International Pediatric Research Foundation, Inc. Printed in U.S.A. Development of Ventilatory Response to Transient Hypercapnia and Hypercapnic Hypoxia in Term Infants SIGNE SØVIK AND KRISTIN LOSSIUS Department of Physiology, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Oslo, NO-0317 Oslo [S.S.], and Section of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Rikshospitalet, NO–0027 Oslo [K.L.], Norway ABSTRACT Whereas peripheral chemoreceptor oxygen sensitivity in- was unchanged for hypoxia. Response magnitude was unchanged creases markedly after birth, previous studies of ventilatory for hypercapnia, but increased for the two hypoxic stimuli. In responses to CO2 in term infants have shown no postnatal conclusion, an interaction between the effects of hypercapnia and development. However, the hypercapnic challenges applied have hypoxia on ventilatory response rate emerged between postnatal usually been long-term, which meant that the effect of central d 2 and wk 8 in term infants. Concomitantly, stimulus-response chemoreceptors dominated. Oscillatory breathing, apneas, and time to hypercapnic stimuli declined markedly. The development sighs cause transient PCO2 changes, probably primarily stimulat- of a prompt response to transient hypercapnia may be important ing peripheral chemoreceptors. We wanted to assess whether the for infant respiratory stability. (Pediatr Res 55: 302–309, 2004) immediate ventilatory responses to step changes in inspired CO2 and O2 in term infants undergo postnatal developmental changes. Twenty-six healthy term infants were studied during natural Abbreviations sleep 2 d and 8 wk postnatally. Ventilatory responses to a FiCO2, fraction of inspired carbon dioxide randomized sequence of 15 s hypercapnia (3% CO2), hypoxia fR, respiratory rate ϩ (15% O2), and hypercapnic hypoxia (3% CO2 15% O2) were PaCO2, partial pressure of arterial carbon dioxide recorded breath-by-breath using a pneumotachometer.
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