Respiratory Distress Syndrome - Causes - Causes

RDS is a type of neonatal respiratory disease that is caused most often by a lack of surfactant in the lungs. A fetus's lungs start making surfactant during the third trimester of pregnancy, or weeks 26 through labor and delivery. Surfactant coats the insides of the air sacs, or alveoli, in the lungs. This helps keep the lungs open so breathing can occur after birth. To understand respiratory distress syndrome, it helps to learn about how the lungs work.

Without enough surfactant, the lungs may collapse when the newborn exhales. The newborn then has to work harder to breathe. He or she might not be able to get enough oxygen to support the body's organs.

Some full-term newborns develop RDS because they have faulty genes that affect how their bodies make surfactant.

ewborn in respiratory distress following a premature delivery.
Newborn in respiratory distress following a premature delivery. The top image shows a healthy newborn with healthy levels of surfactant in the lungs and oxygen in the blood. The bottom image shows a baby born prematurely. The lack of surfactant causes the alveoli, or air sacs, to thicken and become inflamed, making it hard to breathe. This reduces the amount of oxygen-rich blood that reaches the brain and other tissues in the body. Medical Illustration Copyright © 2019 Nucleus Medical Media, All rights reserved.