Infant respiratory distress syndrome (
IRDS), also called
neonatal respiratory distress syndrome,
respiratory distress syndrome of newborn, or increasingly
surfactant deficiency disorder (
SDD), and previously called
hyaline membrane disease (HMD), is a
syndrome in
premature infants caused by developmental insufficiency of
surfactant production and structural immaturity in the
lungs. It can also be a consequence of
neonatal infection. It can also result from a genetic problem with the production of surfactant associated proteins. IRDS affects about 1% of newborn infants and is the leading cause of death in
preterm infants. The incidence decreases with advancing
gestational age, from about 50% in babies born at 26–28 weeks, to about 25% at 30–31 weeks. The syndrome is more frequent in infants of diabetic mothers and in the second born of premature twins.