CO2 Inhalation as a New Treatment Modality for Apnea of Prematurity

The objective of the present proposed study is to discover whether, in the nursery setting, administration of low concentration inhaled CO2 (0.8%) for a prolonged period (3 days) can make breathing more regular with less apneic time than that observed with administration of theophylline. The hypothesis to be tested is that inhalation of low concentration CO2 (0.8%) will reduce apnea more effectively and will have fewer adverse side effects than theophylline.