

To maintain the arterial oxygen pressure above 60 mm Hg, the required fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO 2) was 0.3 for infants aged ≤26 weeks and 0.4 for infants aged >26 weeks the infants who needed FiO 2 above 0.4 were treated with “early rescue therapy” and 200 mg/kg poractant alfa (Curosurf®, Chiesi Pharmaceuticals, Italy). All patients were treated with nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) with 7 cm H 2O mean airway pressure. RDS diagnosis was established by evaluating x-ray and clinical findings. The Ethics Committee of the Uludag University Medical Faculty approved this study a written informed consent was obtained from the parents before enrollment. Exclusion criteria included refusal of parental consent infants with major congenital abnormalities, chromosomal anomalies, or cyanotic congenital heart disease major maternal infection and chorioamnionitis. 1, 6 In this study, we aimed to identify the relationship between RDS and 25(OH)D levels in premature infants.Īll preterm infants aged ≤32 gestational weeks admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of the Uludag University Medical School between January 20 were enrolled in this prospective study. Animal studies have shown 1,25(OH) 2D to increase surfactant synthesis and secretion by increasing the number of type 2 alveolar cells. 5 The positive effects of steroids on lung development and maturation are well known, and 1,25-dihydroxy vitamin D 3, which is the active form of 25(OH)D with steroid structure, has been shown to exert positive effects on fetal lung development. The critical factors in the pathogenesis of RDS are surfactant deficiency and pulmonary immaturity. Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) is the most common respiratory problem in premature infants. 2 25(OH)D exhibits antiproliferative, proapoptotic, and immunomodulatoy properties additionally, it plays a role in cell development and embryogenesis and helps in fetal lung maturation.


1 Management of vitamin D deficiency is crucial during pregnancy because 25(OH)D deficiency affects fetal development besides bone metabolism. 25-hydroxyvitamin D is an important steroid hormone involved in bone metabolism and neuromuscular functions in recent years, an increasing number of reports in the literature have revealed incidences of maternal and neonatal 25(OH)D deficiency.
