What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Respiratory
Distress Syndrome?
Signs and symptoms of respiratory distress syndrome
(RDS) usually appear at birth or within the next few hours. They include:
- Rapid, shallow breathing
- Sharp pulling in of the chest below the ribs
with each breath taken in
- Grunting sounds during exhalation
- Flaring of the nostrils during breathing
The baby may also stop breathing for a few seconds
every now and then. This is called apnea.
Depending on how severe the RDS is, these babies
also may develop other serious medical problems, including:
- A collapsed lung.
- Leakage of air from the lung into the chest
cavity. This is rare.
-
Bronchopulmonary dysplasia, another lung disease in premature infants.
- Bleeding in the brain, which can lead to delayed
mental development, mental retardation, and
cerebral palsy.
- Sepsis, an infection of the bloodstream.
- Bleeding in the lung.
- Blindness and other eye problems.
- Kidney failure, only in the most severe cases.
- Necrotizing enterocolitis, a disease of the
bowel.
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