This paper reviews the recent advances in neonatal physiology that may be relevant for clinical anaesthesia. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation studies in a piglet animal model suggest that current cardiopulmonary resuscitation guidelines are still adequate for newborns and infants. Advances in cardiovascular physiology help us to understand the differential effects of inotropic agents or anaesthetics in immature and mature hearts. The search for alternatives to conventional treatment in respiratory distress syndrome of the newborn is still in progress. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is now used on a routine basis in many centres, but arteriovenous bypass may be replaced by a more simple single venous cannula perfusion circuit. The developmentlowbar; of therapeutic trials in infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia provides us with new insights on airway maturation and reactivity. New advances in cerebral blood flow regulation and changes during cardiac surgery in the neonatal period are reviewed, as well as the potential benefits and/or dangers of perioperative blood glucose therapy.
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