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Ibuprofen is as effective as indomethacin for closing PDA in extremely premature infants, according to a report in the March issue of the Archives of Disease in Childhood--Fetal and Neonatal Edition.

"Ibuprofen is as effective as indomethacin for closing patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) in extremely premature infants, according to a report in the March issue of the Archives of Disease in Childhood--Fetal and Neonatal Edition.

Ibuprofen has previously proven effective for the closure of PDA without reducing mesenteric, renal, or cerebral blood flow, the authors explain, but it remains unclear whether this therapy is safe and effective in extremely premature infants.

Dr. B-H Su and colleagues from China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan compared ibuprofen with indomethacin for inducing PDA closure in 119 extremely premature infants.

The PDA closure rate and number of doses of treatment were similar in the ibuprofen and indomethacin groups, the authors report. The final total closure rates were 88.3 per cent for ibuprofen and 88.1 per cent for indomethacin.

Survival at one month and severe premature complications did not differ between the two treatment groups, the investigators say.

The number of infants who developed oliguria was higher (but not significantly so) in the indomethacin group (15.3 per cent) than in the ibuprofen group (6.7 per cent), the report indicates.

"Ibuprofen is as effective as indomethacin for the early-targeted treatment of PDA in extremely premature infants without increasing incidence in renal dysfunction or other complications," the researchers conclude. "A 24-hour interval regimen for both drugs seems to be a safe and effective protocol."

"Using our echocardiographic PDA flow pattern as a guide for PDA treatment," the authors add, "we used fewer doses of drugs to achieve an acceptable closing rate."