Surfactant administration via laryngeal mask or supraglottic airway

Abstract

Surfactant therapy has been the mainstay of treatment in preterm neonates with respiratory distress syndrome. Delivery of surfactant through endotracheal intubation has been the commonly used technique. Intubation requires expertise and is associated with complications. In addition, there is also an increased future risk of chronic lung disease. Newer techniques of surfactant delivery abating the need of intubation have been reported. One such minimally invasive technique is surfactant administration through a supraglottic airway device. In this report, we describe the delivery of surfactants using this technique.

Keywords

• integrated neonatal care unit
• intubation–surfactant–extubation
• respiratory distress syndrome
• supraglottic airway device
• surfactant administration through laryngeal mask or supraglottic airway