Pittsburgh Respironics Inc. will slash 10 percent of its work force worldwide and restructure its business in response to what officials called "new product delays and our integration challenges."

Citing higher costs and lower margins, Respironics also said in July that it would miss fourth-quarter earnings estimates. The company, with 2,000 employees, said it will take a pretax charge of $30 million over several quarters. It expects to post a profit of $90 million, or 18 cents a share, in the quarter ended June 30, 1999, compared with earnings of $85 million, or 17 cents a share, a year earlier. Analysts expected earnings of 28 cents a share. Final results were not available at press time in July.

"A number of factors, including cost-containment initiatives in both domestic and international health care markets, have put significant pressure on our traditional rate of sales growth," said Dennis Meteny, president and chief executive officer. He added that regulatory and internal company delays have slowed new product introductions.

In addition, he said, the Health Care Financing Administration's attempts to change the payment schedule for noninvasive ventilation devices, one of the company's product lines, has been "a major distraction" and slowed customers' acceptance of the new therapy. Meteny also said the company's strategic acquisitions have been "an integration and coordination challenge."

In restructuring, Respironics will sell or discontinue some product lines and streamline operations, officials said. The company expects to save 20 cents a share annually from the restructuring, which is also geared toward enhancing the company's investment in research and development.