Editor—Recent work has related the severity of lung damage after neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) to the early inflammatory response and the degree of matrix degradation.1 2Although treatment with exogenous surfactant reduces the incidence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), it is not known whether it attenuates this inflammatory response.

This response has largely been investigated by looking at cells, cytokines, and chemokines in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BAL) of ventilated infants. Increased concentrations of the macrophage cytokines tumour necrosis …