A long-term study that included some premature babies given continuous negative-extrathoracic pressure (CNEP) and some who got standard breathing tubes suggests no evidence of disadvantage, in terms of long-term disability or psychological outcomes, in the CNEP group.

University of Nottingham researchers followed up on 133 of the 205 children still alive -- now ages 9 to 15 -- who were involved in the original study on continuous negative-extrathoracic pressure, or CNEP, pioneered by pediatrician David Southall, the BBC reported Friday.

Pressure Applied to the Chest

Half the children had had the CNEP treatment -- with pressure applied to the chest to aid breathing -- but the rest were given the standard treatment of a breathing tube inserted through the larynx.

The researchers found no differences between the two groups of children, except those that could be explained by chance, and there was no evidence of a higher risk of long-term disability for children given CNEP.

Our long-term study of the original trial participants suggests no evidence of disadvantage, in terms of long-term disability or psychological outcomes, from the use of CNEP, said study leader Neil Marlow of Queen's Medical Center in London.