Category Archives: Neonatal Research

Lacuna trial now in print

Posted on 10 March 2016 by Keith Barrington

Now available on-line the pilot trial of lactoferrin prophylaxis that I performed at Sainte Justine. (Barrington KJ, Assaad M-A, Janvier A. The Lacuna Trial: a double-blind randomized controlled pilot trial of lactoferrin supplementation in the very preterm infant. J Perinatol. … Continue reading →

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Videolaryngoscopy to teach intubation

Posted on 10 March 2016 by Keith Barrington

Two recent randomized trials, one from our group, and another one from Melbourne have evaluate the role of the videolaryngoscope (VL) in teaching trainees in neonatology to perform endotracheal intubations. The two trials are structured differently and tell us different … Continue reading →

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Steroids directly in the lungs? Version 2

Posted on 24 February 2016 by Keith Barrington

A couple of weeks ago I discussed a new multicenter RCT which examined the effects of multiple repeated doses of steroids, given by inhalation starting on the first day of life, and continuing, at least until the infants reached 14 … Continue reading →

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Still more doubts about BOOSTing saturations?

Posted on 22 February 2016 by Keith Barrington

I won’t make a point-by-point response to Reese’s comments, mostly because I agree with most of them! Oxygen is toxic. Minimizing oxygen toxicity is a vitally important issue. Alarm fatigue is a major problem. In our NICU we performed an … Continue reading →

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All oscillators are equal, but some oscillators are more equal than others

Posted on 22 February 2016 by Keith Barrington

My readers are a highly educated bunch and I am sure that the anglophones among you will recognize that title as a bastardized quotation from “Animal Farm”. Not my favorite of George Orwell, a bit too obvious as an analogy … Continue reading →

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More Doubts about BOOSTing saturations?

Posted on 22 February 2016 by Keith Barrington

As I just mentioned I received another thoughtful comment from Reese Clark, which I reproduce in its entirety below: “After re-reading my post and at the risk of being a bit redundant with what Dr Barrington has already carefully presented … Continue reading →

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Doubts about BOOSTING saturations?

Posted on 22 February 2016 by Keith Barrington

I received a very thoughtful comment from Reese Clark, who many of you will know as a leader in neonatology whose many years of experience and important scientific contributions to neonatology make him someone worth listening to. He has doubts … Continue reading →

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Do Clinical Guidelines make a difference?

Posted on 17 February 2016 by Keith Barrington

The question in the title is hard to answer, without a randomized controlled trial of some kind where the guidelines are followed in one group, and not in another. The whole point of most guidelines, though, is to put the … Continue reading →

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BOOST-II long term outcomes

Posted on 16 February 2016 by Keith Barrington

The long-running epic of the oxygen saturation targeting trials is nearing completion. This publication of the joint results of the Australia and UK trials now includes the primary outcome for the trials, the combined rate of death or “disability”. Australia … Continue reading →

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Antenatal Steroids at 36 weeks?

Posted on 11 February 2016 by Keith Barrington

Most of the studies of antenatal steroids for lung maturation included mothers at less than 34 weeks. Most babies at 34 to 36 weeks do fine, although there is a growing realization of their increased long term risks. Even the … Continue reading →

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