Influence of Moderate Hyperbilirubinemia on Cardiorespiratory Control in Preterm Lambs

Conclusion The present results obtained in preterm lambs suggest that a moderate and sustained HB, as encountered daily in neonatal care units, is responsible for alterations in basal cardiorespiratory control in preterm newborns. Importantly, there is currently no reliable means to ascertain the level of bilirubin that can cause cerebral toxicity in a given preterm newborn. We propose that the continuous monitoring of HRV, RRV, and cardiorespiratory interrelations may be one of the various ways used to recognize that a toxic level of HB has been reached, leading in turn to consider a more rapid treatment and obtain a better long-term prognosis. This suggestion, however, must be supported by further experiments in preterm human infants. Ethics Statement This study was carried out in accordance with the recommendations of the Ethics Committee for Animal Care and Experimentation of Sherbrooke University (protocol # 260–10). Author Contributions NS, M-LS, MB-H, and J-PP conceived and designed the experimental protocol of the study. ML-S, MB-H, and NS performed the animal experiments. SA-O, VL, and GC designed, optimized, and adapted the signal processing chain. SA-O and NC analyzed the data. SA-O, VL, GC, NC, and J-PP interpreted the results. SA-O prepared the figures and drafted the manuscript. All the authors revised, read and approved the final version of the manuscript. Funding This work was supported by the Canada Research Chair in Neonatal Respiratory Physiol...
Source: Frontiers in Physiology - Category: Physiology Source Type: research