the therapy of last resort for pulmonary insufficiency. An alternative to ECMO is high-frequency oscillatory ventilation. History In 1908, Maude Abbott documented pulmonary hypoplasia occurring with certain defects of the heart. In 1915, Abbott and J. C. Meakins showed that pulmonary hypoplasia was part of the differential diagnosis of dextrocardia. In 1920, decades before the advent of prenatal imaging, the presence of pulmonary hypoplasia was taken as evidence that diaphragmatic hernias in babies were congenital, not acquired. See also Pulmonary agenesis Potter sequence Prune belly syndrome References External links Congenital disorders of respiratory system Rare diseases