English abstract
Objective: to study the effect of the postnatal administration of Ambroxol in the prevention of respiratory distress
syndrome in preterm neonates at risk and on the severity of the disease in those neonates already suffering from it. Methods: the
study was a randomized clinical trial performed on 20 preterm neonates admitted to the neonatal unit of the Suez Canal University
Hospital, Egypt, with gestational age of 28 to 34 weeks. It was performed in the period from September 200 through March 2003.
Half of the enrolled neonates received intravenous ambroxol (20 mg/kg/d), while the control group received the routine management
of prematurity and a placebo. Results: Ambroxol decreased the incidence of Respiratory Distress Syndrome (RDS), improved the
gas exchange, and decreased Continious Positive Airway pressure (CPAP) pressure, the length of mechanical ventilation and also the
mortality rate. Conclusion: the study concluded that Ambroxol reduced the incidence of this disease in preterm neonates at risk of
developing it, and improved the clinical course of RDS.
