Pulmonary surfactant is a soap-like chemical synthesized by type II alveolar pneumocytes and is of various lipids (80% phospholipids, 5-10% cholesterol, and ~10% surfactant-associated proteins).
Conditions adult respiratory distress syndrome or Hyaline Membrane Disease are also sometimes treated with exogenously derived surfactant.
[2] Poractant alfa, Calfactant, and Beractant are types of natural surfactants commercially available in the United States.
[citation needed] The LISA (Less Invasive Surfactant Administration) method is much more effective in situations where the preterm infant is already breathing, and it has become a standard procedure in German hospitals.
[5] Exogenous surfactant replacement therapy is effective in reducing IRDS mortality and morbidity in preterm infants.