Clin Perinatol 34 (2007) xvxvi

Preface

Steven M. Donn, MD
Thomas E. Wiswell, MD
Guest Editors

It has been nearly 6 years since we were rst invited to edit an edition of
Clinics in Perinatology, entitled Update on Mechanical Ventilation and Exogenous Surfactant. We were honored when Saunders asked us to reprise
the edition. Much has transpired as technology and bioengineering continue
to change the therapeutic options in neonatal ICUs.
In choosing the topics and the authors for the current edition, we have
tried to balance a desire to present innovative care with evidence-based medicine. The proliferation of new ideas, diagnostics, and treatments has been
so rapid that infusion into mainstream care often precedes or even precludes
adequate testing during the time of equipoise. Nevertheless, instituting even
the most innovative of therapies without sucient assessment of safety and
ecacy in our fragile population is a disservice to patients and their families.
We have assembled an all-star team of clinical investigators who are
the leaders in their respective areas of interest and who have made signicant contributions to the eld of neonatal pulmonary care. We have asked
each of them to present the available evidence and to critically review the
literature pertinent to their articles. Several of the topics originally were reviewed in the 2001 edition and are updated. For instance, the article dealing
with pulmonary graphics has taken its illustrations from a next-generation
ventilator graphic monitor, and the articles dealing with surfactant therapy
include areas not addressed previously. Neonatal demographics also are
a moving target, with increasing numbers of tiny survivors who have significant morbidity. The volume concludes with a provocative article focusing

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PREFACE

on the need to dene optimum long-term outcome measures if the quality of

survival is to improve.
We would like to thank all of the authors for their eorts in producing
this edition. All have worked diligently to provide a balanced picture and
to examine the need for further investigation in many areas. We appreciate
the vote of condence from Saunders in asking us to edit a second edition,
and we hope the readership also will nd it worthwhile.
Steven M. Donn, MD
Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine
Department of Pediatrics
C.S. Mott Childrens Hospital
University of Michigan Health System
1500 E. Medical Center Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
E-mail address: smdonnmd@med.umich.edu
Thomas E. Wiswell, MD
Center for Neonatal Care
Florida Hospital Orlando
2718 North Orange Avenue, Suite B
Orlando, FL 32804, USA
E-mail address: Thomas_Wiswell@yahoo.com