Source: Eichenwald E, Corwin M, McEntire B, et al. Intermittent hypoxia and caffeine in infants born preterm: the ICAF randomized clinical trial. Arch Dis Child Fetal Neonatal Ed. 2025:fetalneonatal-2025-329230; doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2025-329230.Investigators from multiple institutions conducted a randomized controlled trial to assess the effect of prolonged treatment with caffeine on intermittent hypoxia (IH), plasma inflammatory markers, and brain MRI in very preterm infants. Study participants were infants born at 1 minute) hypoxemic episodes below 80% saturation,7 and data from the current trial suggest these types of severe events are rare, particularly post-discharge, when the duration of hypoxia drops substantially. The clinical significance of attenuating these milder events, particularly in relation to brain development, remains to be determined. Future studies powered for neurodevelopmental endpoints, potentially enriched for infants with higher IH burden, will be essential to determine whether extending caffeine therapy beyond current norms yields meaningful long-term benefit.Continuing caffeine through discharge for preterm infants reduces the burden of IH events, but clinical benefits are uncertain.
A Sun, study studied this question.