Audio Qbank – Q78 – A neonate in respiratory distress

A male newborn at 34 weeks gestation is in respiratory distress. Physical examination shows cyanosis. X-ray shows displacement of the mediastinum to the right and the absence of bowel gas in the abdomen. Which of the following best explains this presentation?

 

  Congenital hernia
  Failure of canalization of proximal bowel
  Hypoplasia of the lungs
  Insufficient clearance of amniotic fluid from the alveolar spaces
  Insufficient surfactant production