Division of Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT. E-mail: vineet.bhandari@yale.edu
While nasal continuous positive airway pressure (NCPAP) is effective as a mode of extubation, in infants recovering from respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) after a period of endotracheal tube mechanical ventilation, recent evidence suggests that synchronized nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation (SNIPPV) is significantly better. More studies are required to establish the efficacy of using early NCPAP or SNIPPV, with or without surfactant administration.
