How is chronic lung disease diagnosed?
There is no one test to diagnose chronic lung disease. A doctor may first suspect it if your baby has difficulty breathing. The diagnosis is confirmed when one of the following is present: • The baby needs extra oxygen for at least 28 days after birth. • At 36 weeks of gestational age, the baby needs more oxygen than is present in ordinary air. Gestational age is the number of weeks and days a baby has developed since the beginning of the pregnancy, or gestation. A doctor may order other tests to rule out other causes of breathing difficulties. A baby who has been already diagnosed with chronic lung disease may have additional tests to help doctors check for complications. How is it treated? Treatment for chronic lung disease depends on how severe it is. Treatment does not cure chronic lung disease but it does help the newborn breathe more easily. This minimizes the stress on the newborn’s body while the lungs mature and heal on their own. Treatment begins in the hospital, with oxygen
Because CLD is a chronic disease and appears gradually, physicians must look at several factors. It is often diagnosed when a premature baby with respiratory problems continues to need additional oxygen after reaching 36 weeks gestational age. Chest x-rays compared with previous x-rays may show changes in the appearance of the lungs. The x-ray of lungs with CLD often have a bubbly, sponge-like appearance. X-rays are diagnostic tests which use invisible electromagnetic energy beams to produce images of internal tissues, bones, and organs onto film.
There is no one test to diagnose chronic lung disease. A doctor may first suspect it if your baby has difficulty breathing. The diagnosis is confirmed when one of the following is present: • The baby needs extra oxygen for at least 28 days after birth. • At 36 weeks of gestational age, the baby needs more oxygen than is present in ordinary air. Gestational age is the number of weeks and days a baby has developed since the beginning of the pregnancy, or gestation. A doctor may order other tests to rule out other causes of breathing difficulties. A baby who has been already diagnosed with chronic lung disease may have additional tests to help doctors check for complications.
