Editorial
Assisted ventilation for chronic neuromuscular disorders
| The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below. |
The provision of long term ventilatory support to patients with
chronic neuromuscular disorders is a major logistic, technical, and
clinical challenge. In this issue of Thorax
Baydur and colleagues share their experiences with ventilatory support
in this context.1 Much of their experience reflects the
advances in technology that have evolved over the last six decades.
Their initial experience was with negative pressure ventilation and
later with positive pressure ventilation. Positive pressure ventilation
has evolved from an invasive interface (the tracheostomy) to, in many
situations, a non-invasive interface. Although negative pressure
ventilation served their early patients well in the post-poliomyelitis
epidemic, their experience with non-invasive ventilation
mouth or
nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation (MNIPPV)indicates that, in both poliomyelitis and Duchenne's muscular dystrophy, MNIPPV
is more effective.
The slow decline in forced vital capacity (FVC) over 24 years in the
poliomyelitis group receiving negative pressure ventilation is
remarkable. In the 25 patients studied
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This article has been cited by other articles:
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Rumbak, M. J., Walker, R. M.
(2001). Should Patients With Neuromuscular Disease Be Denied the Choice of the Treatment of Mechanical Ventilation?. Chest
119: 683-684
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