Late therapeutic use of tauractant in infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia: A retrospective comparative study

Introduction. Bronchopulmonary dysplasia is a major problem in the care of very preterm infants, as it determines the duration of respiratory support, length of hospital stay, and subsequent prognosis. In some very preterm infants, the need for respiratory support persists beyond 28 days of life, which makes evaluation of late therapeutic tauractant administration clinically relevant.

Aim. To evaluate the efficacy of tauractant administration after 28 days of life in very preterm infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia and to compare outcomes according to different routes of pulmonary delivery.

Materials and methods. A retrospective single- center comparative study was conducted. The study included 64 infants with a gestational age of less than 28 weeks and a birth weight of less than 1 500 g who required respiratory support at 28 days of life. The main group comprised 32 infants who received tauractant, the comparison group included 32 infants who did not receive tauractant and were matched according to key clinical and anamnestic characteristics. In the main group, three subgroups were identified: endotracheal administration (n = 11), inhaled administration (n = 10), and inhaled administration combined with budesonide (n = 11).

Results. The groups were comparable in terms of baseline demographic, perinatal, and initial respiratory characteristics. The need for respiratory support at 36 weeks postconceptional age (PCA) was less frequent in infants treated with tauractant: 17/32 (53.1%) versus 27/32 (84.4%); RR 0.630; 95% CI: 0.44–0.90; p = 0.014. The need for respiratory support at 36 weeks PCA was lowest after inhaled tauractant combined with budesonide: 18.2% versus 72.7% after endotracheal administration and 70.0% after inhaled tauractant alone; p = 0.030. No deaths occurred.

Conclusion. Late tauractant administration in very preterm infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia was associated with a lower need for respiratory support by 36 weeks PCA. Inhaled tauractant combined with budesonide appeared to be the most promising approach in this cohort.

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