Circulation Journal Official Journal of the Japanese Circulation Society http://www. j-circ.or.jp contrast, among premature infants, premature birth interrupts the normal maturation of ductal contractile mechanisms, leaving the ductus more susceptible to vasodilatory factors. 7 Although prostaglandins (PGs) are considered the dominant vasodilators opposing ductal constriction in the later part of gestation, 6 Kajimura et al suggest an even greater complexity in the mechanisms regulating ductus arteriosus, wherein • NO also plays an critical role in ductal patency, particularly in the setting of maternal chorioamnionitis. Another important finding in the present study by Kajimura et al is that use of a NOS inhibitor precursor, L-N G -nitroarginine methyl ester hydrochloride (L-NAME, which undergoes hydrolysis in vivo to produce L-N G -nitroarginine, the functional NOS inhibitor) prevented delayed closure of the ductus after birth in pups from LPS-injected rats. 5 These observations suggest that maternal risk factors, such as chorioamnionitis, can influence the mechanisms of DA regulation, wherein the use of treatments interfering with • NO synthesis or function could be useful adjuncts to achieve PDA closure in this subpopulation of infants, and provide a basis for more targeted interventions on the PDA. 5 To that end, Seidner et al showed, among preterm newborn baboons, that the combined use of indomethacin and L-NAME produces a much greater degree of ductus constriction than does indomethacin alone, corresponding to the synergistic interaction of • NO and PG in ductal regulation. 10 However, • NO blockade may not be therapeutically beneficial, because of the nonspecific nature of currently available treatments. 7 Although a phase I and II study by Keller et al showed higher rates of ductal closure with combined L-N G -monomethyl Arginine citrate (L-NMMA, a he ductus arteriosus (DA) is an essential component of the fetal circulation, shunting blood away from the high-resistance pulmonary vascular bed toward the placenta. At birth, the placental circulation is removed, and the lungs become the source of oxygenated blood; thus, shunting through the ductus becomes potentially harmful. Although closure of the ductus occurs within hours after birth in the majority of term infants, a persistent patent DA (PDA), defined as a ductus that fails to close within 72 h postnatal age, is seen in the majority of infants born extremely premature (<28 weeks of gestation). 1 A PDA is often a precursor to heart failure, prolonged ventilator dependency, necrotizing enterocolitis, and bronchopulmonary dysplasia. Moreover, recent evidence shows higher mortality in infants with a PDA than in agematched infants with closed ductus. 2 However, the extent to which these adverse consequences are attributable to the PDA remains unknown. Despite nearly 6 decades of basic and clinical research, fundamental questions on the evaluation and treatment of PDA in preterm infants remain unanswered.
Article p 703Rather than approaching the PDA as an ...