Abstract
Sixteen premature infants were treated with indomethacin, either orally or intravenously, in order to close a symptomatic patent ductus arteriosus requiring mechanical ventilation. Positive effect was obtained in 4 of the 10 orally treated patients and in 1 of the 6 with intravenous administration. Immediate side effects were impairment of renal function, abdominal distension, and restlessness.
Although the oxygen administration was guided using a transcutaneous oxymonitor, three severe cases of retrolental fibroplasia occurred. As indomethacin is a nonselective inhibitor of all prostaglandins, it might also cause a constriction of the retinal arteries, and as such be a factor in the development of retrolental fibroplasia in small premature infants.
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Lindemann, R., Blystad, W. & Egge, K. Retrolental fibroplasia in premature infants with patent ductus arteriosus treated with indomethacin. Eur J Pediatr 138, 56–58 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00442330
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00442330