Abstract
Cor pulmonale or right ventricular hypertrophy (RVH) is a recognized complication of BPD, while LVH has been reported mainly at autopsy. Serial cardiac evaluations were performed on 19 infants with BPD during a 2 year period. RVH was documented by EKG and EHCO (RVH=RV wall thickness >2SD above mean predicted) in 13/19 infants; 6/19 had an ↑ RV dimension and 9/19 had abnormal RV systolic time intervals on at least 1 occasion, suggesting ↑ pulmonary artery pressure. ↑ LV wall thickness (>2SD above mean) was documented by ECHO in a sub-group of 10 infants. Six of these 10 also had LVH by EKG, and in 7/10 LVH was associated with septal hypertrophy. The LVH was present early and resolved in 2, but persisted or increased in 8 over 4 to 24 months followup. The characteristics for the 2 groups are summarized: All babies required mechanical ventilation from birth; no significant differences were found in maximum FiO2, peak pressure, or in the mean PaO2 achieved during 1st 2 weeks for the 2 groups. Concentric hypertrophy of the LV, documented in a subgroup of BPD infants was associated with a more complicated clinical course, prolonged hospitalization, and a poorer prognosis.
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