respiratory distress syndrome

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun A respiratory disease of newborn infants, especially premature infants, characterized by reduced amounts of lung surfactant, cyanosis, the formation of a glassy membrane over the alveoli of the lungs, and pulmonary collapse.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun an acute lung disease of the newborn (especially the premature newborn); lungs cannot expand because of a wetting agent is lacking; characterized by rapid shallow breathing and cyanosis and the formation of a glassy hyaline membrane over the alveoli