Inhaled nitric oxide therapy increases blood nitrite, nitrate, and s-nitrosohemoglobin concentrations in infants with pulmonary hypertension

Abstract

Objective: To measure the circulating concentrations of nitric oxide (NO) adducts with NO bioactivity after inhaled NO (iNO) therapy in infants with pulmonary hypertension. Study design: In this single center study, 5 sequential blood samples were collected from infants with pulmonary hypertension before, during, and after therapy with iNO (n = 17). Samples were collected from a control group of hospitalized infants without pulmonary hypertension (n = 16) and from healthy adults for comparison (n = 12). Results: After beginning iNO (20 ppm) whole blood nitrite levels increased approximately two-fold within 2 hours (P