Burden of prematurity-associated recurrent wheezing: caregiver missed work in the D-Wheeze trial

Objective This study describes the burden of prematurity-associated wheezing in black infants with respect to caregiver missed work. Study design We analyzed data from the D-Wheeze trial (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT01601847). Black infants between 28–0/7 to 36–6/7 weeks’ gestational age at birth receiving <28 days of supplemental oxygen were enrolled. The primary outcome was missed work to care for the infant in the first year. Results 147/277 (53.1%) infants had caregivers who reported time off. In an adjusted model, vitamin D supplementation (OR 0.52 [95% CI 0.30–0.89]; P = 0.018), recurrent wheeze (OR 2.26 [95% CI, 1.15–4.44]; P = 0.018), and other children in the household <5 years old (OR 0.45 [95% CI 0.26–0.78]; P = 0.004) were significantly associated with caregiver missed work. Conclusions Black premature infants had a significant burden of caregiver missed work, emphasizing the impact of prematurity-associated wheezing.