A newborn has respiratory distress and a chest X-ray is planned. Regarding timing, which statement is correct?

Answer: C. It is better to wait a couple of hours (e.g. after about 2-4 hours) rather than immediately after birth, because the lungs may appear white due to retained lung fluid

Timing of the chest X-ray

A chest X-ray is part of the work-up of any baby with respiratory distress, but timing matters.

Why wait

• Immediately after birth the lungs may appear white due to retained fetal lung fluid, which can be misleading.
• It is therefore better to wait a couple of hours (about 2-4 hours) so the film is more interpretable.

Other investigations

A blood gas (arterial/capillary) helps distinguish ventilatory from perfusion problems; FBC, CRP, blood culture and surface swabs assess for infection. The blood gas and X-ray are complementary, not interchangeable.

Why C

Waiting ~2-4 hours avoids the misleading white-out from retained lung fluid.

Why the others are wrong

An immediate film can be misleading; a chest X-ray IS useful (just timed appropriately); waiting a week is too long; and it does not replace the blood gas.