Wilson-Mikity syndrome
Encyclopedia
In pediatrics
, Wilson-Mikity syndrome
is a rare lung
condition that affect low birth weight
babies.
It was characterized in 1960.
It is closely related to bronchopulmonary dysplasia
, differing mainly in the lack of prior ventilatory support. All the initial patients described with Wilson-Mikity syndrome were very low birth weight infants that had no history of mechanical ventilation
and yet developed a syndrome that clinically resembled BPD. Upon the death of some of these infants, autopsies showed histologic changes also similar to those seen in BPD.
Pediatrics
Pediatrics or paediatrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents. A medical practitioner who specializes in this area is known as a pediatrician or paediatrician...
, Wilson-Mikity syndrome
Syndrome
In medicine and psychology, a syndrome is the association of several clinically recognizable features, signs , symptoms , phenomena or characteristics that often occur together, so that the presence of one or more features alerts the physician to the possible presence of the others...
is a rare lung
Lung
The lung is the essential respiration organ in many air-breathing animals, including most tetrapods, a few fish and a few snails. In mammals and the more complex life forms, the two lungs are located near the backbone on either side of the heart...
condition that affect low birth weight
Low birth weight
Low birth weight is defined as a birth weight of a liveborn infant of less than 2,500 g. regardless of gestational age-Causes:LBW is either the result of preterm birth or of the infant being small for gestational age , or a combination of...
babies.
It was characterized in 1960.
It is closely related to bronchopulmonary dysplasia
Bronchopulmonary dysplasia
Bronchopulmonary dysplasia is a chronic lung disorder that is most common among children who were born prematurely, with low birthweights and who received prolonged mechanical ventilation to treat respiratory distress syndrome...
, differing mainly in the lack of prior ventilatory support. All the initial patients described with Wilson-Mikity syndrome were very low birth weight infants that had no history of mechanical ventilation
Mechanical ventilation
In medicine, mechanical ventilation is a method to mechanically assist or replace spontaneous breathing. This may involve a machine called a ventilator or the breathing may be assisted by a physician, respiratory therapist or other suitable person compressing a bag or set of bellows...
and yet developed a syndrome that clinically resembled BPD. Upon the death of some of these infants, autopsies showed histologic changes also similar to those seen in BPD.