Baseline characteristics of the randomised patients
| Home, N=33 | Hospital, N=34 | P value | |
| Age, years | 63.6±8.6 | 63.1±7.0 | 0.80 |
| Male sex, n (%) | 15 (45%) | 12 (35%) | 0.46 |
| Active smokers, n (%) | 4 (12%) | 9 (27%) | 0.22 |
| Packyears | 37.4±18.7 | 47.6±25.8 | 0.07 |
| LTOT n (%) | 26 (79%) | 28 (82%) | 0.77 |
| BMI, kg/m2 | 24.9±6.0 | 25.7±4.1 | 0.52 |
| Inhaled long-acting beta-agonists, n (%) | 32 (97%) | 31 (91%) | 0.61 |
| Inhaled long-acting anti-cholinergics, n (%) | 29 (88%) | 31 (91%) | 0.71 |
| Inhaled corticosteroids, n (%) | 27 (82%) | 28 (82%) | 0.99 |
| Morphine, n (%) | 11 (33%) | 8 (24%) | 0.43 |
| Oral corticosteroids, n (%) | 15 (46%) | 12 (35%) | 0.46 |
| Previous NIV experience during AECOPD, n (%) | 16 (48%) | 17 (50%) | 0.90 |
| Episodes of NIV for AECOPD, median (range) | 1 (1–3) | 1 (1–2) | 0.33 |
| Time span NIV for AECOPD—inclusion, days, median (range) | 106 (34–2555) | 172 (30–1825) | 0.19 |
| Exacerbations, previous 12 months, median (IQR) | 4 (1–8) | 3 (1–5) | 0.31 |
| Hospitalisations, previous 12 months, median (IQR) | 1 (0–2) | 1 (1–2) | 0.86 |
| Rehabilitation, n (%) | 7 (21%) | 8 (24%) | 0.99 |
| ESS score, points | 5.8±3.9 | 7.1±4.6 | 0.26 |
| AHI (events/hour), median (IQR) | 2.9 (0.5–5.6) | 1.4 (0.8–2.9) | 0.38 |
| Number of patients with AHI>15, n (%) | 1 (3%) | 2 (6%) | 0.99 |
Data are shown in mean and SD unless otherwise stated.
AECOPD, acute exacerbation of COPD; AHI, apnoea/hypopnea index; BMI, body mass index; ESS, Epworth Sleepiness Scale;IQR, interquartile range; LTOT, long-term oxygen therapy; NIV, non-invasive ventilation.