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Implementation of a novel bubble continuous positive airway pressure system with a blender in preterm infants in a low resource setting

Journal of Perinatology volume 45, pages 63–67 (2025)Cite this article

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Abstract

Objective

To determine if a novel CPAP system is associated with physiologic improvement in premature infants in a low resource setting and if the introduction of blended oxygen would reduce FiO2.

Study design

Feasibility study of infants ≤2000 g or ≤32 weeks gestational age with early respiratory distress who were placed on Vayu CPAP with continuous pulse oximetry. Physiologic parameters were recorded prior to initiation and through the first 24 h.

Results

Seventy-six infants of birthweight 1360 ± 324 g and gestational age 31.2 ± 2.5 weeks were included. Compared to baseline, heart rate, respiratory rate, FiO2, and Silverman Anderson score significantly decreased while oxygen saturations significantly increased at one hour with persistence through 24 h.

Conclusion

Utilization of Vayu CPAP in premature infants with respiratory distress was associated with immediate improvement in physiologic parameters. Use of blended oxygen coupled with pulse oximetry facilitates reduction in delivered oxygen.

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Fig. 1: Change in mean physiologic parameters over first 24 h on vCPAP.

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Data availability

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all of the pediatric staff at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre for their dedication and enthusiastic care of the infants in our study.

Funding

This work was supported in part by Bloomberg Philanthropies. Vayu Global Health Innovations donated the continuous positive airway pressure machines. Both Vayu Global Health Innovations and Bloomberg Philanthropies had no involvement in study design, data collection, data analysis, or decision for publication submission.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Neonatology, NewYork-Presbyterian-Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA

    Emily Ahn & Jeffrey Perlman

  2. Department of Pediatrics, Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre, Moshi, Tanzania

    Aisa Shayo, Matei Mselle & Anna Sechu

  3. Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College, Moshi, Tanzania

    Aisa Shayo

Authors
  1. Emily Ahn
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  2. Aisa Shayo
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  3. Matei Mselle
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  4. Anna Sechu
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  5. Jeffrey Perlman
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Contributions

Drs. Ahn and Perlman conceptualized and designed the study, supervised study implementation and data collection, were responsible for data curation, performed formal data analysis, and drafted the initial manuscript. Drs. Mselle and Shayo and Nurse Sechu assisted with study design, acquisition of data, and manuscript revisions. All authors critically reviewed the manuscript for important intellectual content, revised the manuscript and approved the final manuscript as submitted and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Emily Ahn.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Ethics approval

This project was approved by the KCMC ethics committee (No 2622) and the National Institute of Medical Research (NIMR/HQ/R.8a/Vol.1X/4561) in Tanzania and included a data transfer agreement. All methods were performed in accordance with the relevant guidelines and regulations. Informed consent was obtained from the parents.

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Ahn, E., Shayo, A., Mselle, M. et al. Implementation of a novel bubble continuous positive airway pressure system with a blender in preterm infants in a low resource setting. J Perinatol 45, 63–67 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-024-02153-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-024-02153-5

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