Ventilatory and Sensory Responses in Adult Survivors of Preterm Birth and Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia with Reduced Exercise Capacity

摘要

Rationale: Adults born very to extremely preterm, with or without bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), have obstructive lung disease, but it is unknown whether this results in respiratory limitations, such as mechanical constraints to Vt expansion during exercise leading to intolerable dyspnea and reduced exercise tolerance, as it does in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.Objectives: To test the hypothesis that adult survivors of preterm birth (=￡32 wk gestational age) with (n = 20) and without BPD (n = 15) with reduced exercise capacity demonstrate clinically important respiratory limitations at near-maximal exercise compared with full-term control subjects (n = 20).Methods: Detailed ventilatory and sensory measurements were made before and during exercise on all patients in the three study groups.