Surfactant therapy is the medical administration of exogenous surfactant. Surfactants used in this manner are typically instilled directly into the trachea.
Contents
Respiratory distress syndrome
Exogenous surfactant replacement therapy is effective in reducing RDS mortality and morbidity in preterm infants.
Types of surfactants
Poractant alfa, Calfactant, Beractant are the types of natural surfactants commercially available in the United States. Although data is sometimes conflicting, it appears that there are no significant differences among the available preparations.
Adult respiratory distress syndrome
Surfactant therapy is not used to treat adults with adult respiratory distress syndrome because the evidence regarding its effect on patient-important outcomes is inconsistent.
References
Surfactant therapy Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA