Role of nitric oxide in neonatology

Nitric oxide has many roles in the body, but one major function is regulation of vascular tone. The discovery of this function in 1987 offered many therapeutic opportunities for mature and premature babies with significant lung disease. However clinical studies have produced different results in these two groups of babies. Term or near-term infants with hypoxic respiratory failure, despite standard intensive care support, should have a trial of inhaled nitric oxide. The situation is less clear with preterm infants. The evidence so far suggests that there is no role for short-term use of inhaled nitric oxide as an effective rescue therapy for very preterm infants with profound respiratory failure. In contrast, less ill preterm infants may benefit from nitric oxide, both in the short and over the long term.