Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn

Introduction: Persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN) was first described by Gersony et al 1 of persistence of the fetal circulation in 1969. It is a clinical syndrome characterized by respiratory distress, hypoxemia, elevated pulmonary vascular resistance and a right to left shunting of venous blood across the foramen ovale and/or ductus arteriosus. The etiology of PPHN is not completely understood. Basically, the pulmonary vascular resistance may remain elevated due to prenatal pathology or postnatal events which interfer with the normal circulatory transition from fetal to extrauterine life. Nowadays, the clinician is still faced daily with the difficulty of caring for PPHN, and this syndrome continues to cause significant morbidity and mortality.