Diaphragm pacing failure secondary to deteriorated chest wall mechanics: When a good diaphragm does not suffice to take a good breath in

AbstractDiaphragm pacing allows certain quadriplegic patients to be weaned from mechanical ventilation. Pacing failure can result from device dysfunction, neurotransmission failure, or degraded lung mechanics (such as atelectasis). We report two cases where progressive pacing failure was attributed to deteriorated chest wall mechanics. The first patient suffered from cervical spinal cord injury at age 45, was implanted with a phrenic stimulator (intrathoracic), successfully weaned from ventilation, and permanently paced for 7 years. Pacing effectiveness then slowly declined, finally attributed to rib cage stiffening due to ankylosing spondylitis. The second patient became quadriplegic after meningitis at age 15, was implanted with a phrenic stimulator (intradiaphragmatic) and weaned. After a year hypoventilation developed without obvious cause. In relationship with complex endocrine disorders, the patient had gained 31 kg. Pacing failure was attributed to excessive mechanical inspiratory load. Rib cage mechanics abnormalities should be listed among causes of diaphragm pacing failure and it should be kept in mind that a “good diaphragm” is not sufficient to produce a “good inspiration”

Development and Evaluation of a Simulation-Based Algorithm to Optimize the Planning of Interim Analyses for Clinical Trials in ALS

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Late-phase clinical trials for neurodegenerative diseases have a low probability of success. In this study, we introduce an algorithm that optimizes the planning of interim analyses for clinical trials in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) to better use the time and resources available and minimize the exposure of patients to ineffective or harmful drugs. METHODS: A simulation-based algorithm was developed to determine the optimal interim analysis scheme by integrating prior knowledge about the success rate of ALS clinical trials with drug-specific information obtained in early-phase studies. Interim analysis schemes were optimized by varying the number and timing of interim analyses, together with their decision rules about when to stop a trial. The algorithm was applied retrospectively to 3 clinical trials that investigated the efficacy of diaphragm pacing or ceftriaxone on survival in patients with ALS. Outcomes were additionally compared with conventional interim designs. RESULTS: We evaluated 183-1,351 unique interim analysis schemes for each trial. Application of the optimal designs correctly established lack of efficacy, would have concluded all studies 1.2-19.4 months earlier (reduction of 4.6%-57.7% in trial duration), and could have reduced the number of randomized patients by 1.7%-58.1%. By means of simulation, we illustrate the efficiency for other treatment scenarios. The optimized interim analysis schemes outperformed conventional interim designs in most scenarios. DISCUSSION: Our algorithm uses prior knowledge to determine the uncertainty of the expected treatment effect in ALS clinical trials and optimizes the planning of interim analyses. Improving futility monitoring in ALS could minimize the exposure of patients to ineffective or harmful treatments and result in significant ethical and efficiency gains

Déterminants non ventilatoires de la PaCO2 chez l'humain

Si l'adaptation ventilatoire est impossible, la PaCO2 devient dépendante de la V'CO2. Partant de ce principe, cette thèse étudie les déterminants non ventilatoires de la PaCO2. La première étude, métrologique, compare la mesure du débit cardiaque par la méthode de Fick et par thermodilution. La deuxième étude montre qu une augmentation du débit cardiaque augmente V'CO2 et PaCO2 lorsqu'il existe une dépendance de la consommation d'oxygène au débit cardiaque. La troisième étude montre que l'atrophie musculaire des myopathes entraîne une chute proportionnelle de la V'O2 et de la V'CO2. La quatrième étude propose un modèle original de mesure du coût énergétique de la respiration (V'O2R), chez des patients tétraplégiques porteurs de stimulateurs phréniques implantés. Dans ce contexte, la mise en jeu du diaphragme entraîne une majoration de la V'O2 et de la VCO2 double des valeurs auparavant décrites. Ces travaux confirment la réalité clinique des déterminants non ventilatoires PaCO2 dont la prise en compte peut être nécessaire chez les patients ventilés artificiellement ou atteints de dysfonction musculaire ventilatoire sévère.PARIS-BIUSJ-Thèses (751052125) / SudocPARIS-BIUSJ-Physique recherche (751052113) / SudocSudocFranceF

Quelles mesures non médicamenteuses associées ?

Un intérêt de la kinésithérapie respiratoire en termes de désencombrement bronchique était mentionné dans les recommandations de 2003 (Tableau 1). Cet intérêt doit être nuancé et, sur base des conclusions d’une revue systématique, ne semble justifié que pour des patients présentant un encombrement important [1] (niveau de preuve A). Cependant, plus de 10 ans après ces recommandations, le message reste globalement identique. En effet, il faut reconnaître que le niveau de preuve reste peu élevé. Ainsi, une étude portant sur une technique d’expiration lente (ELTGOL) n’a pas montré de bénéfice chez des patients BPCO que ce soit à la sortie de l’hospitalisation ou après 6 mois à l’exception d’une tendance à la réduction des exacerbations ou hospitalisations pendant les 6 mois de suivi [2] (niveau de preuve A). La présence de bronchiectasies, la quantité de sécrétions produites, le degré d’obstruction et une diminution de la pression de rétraction élastique du poumon devraient être pris en compte dans la décision de recourir aux manoeuvres de désencombrement dont le choix dépendra de leur effet physiologique (compression dynamique des voies aériennes et flux expiratoire) [...

NIV in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: The ‘when’ and ‘how’ of the matter

International audienceNon-invasive ventilation (NIV) has become an essential part of the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) since 2006. NIV very significantly improves survival, quality of life and cognitive performances. The initial NIV settings are simple, but progression of the disease, ventilator dependence and upper airway involvement sometimes make long-term adjustment of NIV more difficult, with a major impact on survival. Unique data concerning the long-term adjustment of NIV in ALS show that correction of leaks, management of obstructive apnoea and adaptation to the patient's degree of ventilator dependence improve the prognosis. Non-ventilatory factors also impact the efficacy of NIV and various solutions have been described and must be applied, including cough assist techniques, control of excess salivation and renutrition. NIV in ALS has been considerably improved as a result of application of all of these measures, avoiding the need for tracheostomy in the very great majority of cases. More advanced use of NIV also requires pulmonologists to master the associated end-of-life palliative care, as well as the modalities of discontinuing ventilation when it becomes unreasonable

Machine-learning based feature selection for a non-invasive breathing change detection

International audienceBackground: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is one of the top 10 causes of death worldwide, representing a major public health problem. Researchers have been looking for new technologies and methods for patient monitoring with the intention of an early identification of acute exacerbation events. Many of these works have been focusing in breathing rate variation, while achieving unsatisfactory sensitivity and/or specificity. This study aims to identify breathing features that better describe respiratory pattern changes in a short-term adjustment of the load-capacity-drive balance, using exercising data. Results: Under any tested circumstances, breathing rate alone leads to poor capability of classifying rest and effort periods. The best performances were achieved when using Fourier coefficients or when combining breathing rate with the signal amplitude and/or ARIMA coefficients. Conclusions: Breathing rate alone is a quite poor feature in terms of prediction of breathing change and the addition of any of the other proposed features improves the classification power. Thus, the combination of features may be considered for enhancing exacerbation prediction methods based in the breathing signal. Trial Registration : ClinicalTrials NCT03753386. Registered 27 November 2018, https:// clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT0375338

Ventilator modes and settings during non-invasive ventilation: effects on respiratory events and implications for their identification.

Compared with invasive ventilation, non-invasive ventilation (NIV) has two unique characteristics: the non-hermetic nature of the system and the fact that the ventilator-lung assembly cannot be considered as a single-compartment model because of the presence of variable resistance represented by the upper airway. When NIV is initiated, the ventilator settings are determined empirically based on a clinical evaluation and diurnal blood gas variations. However, NIV is predominantly applied during sleep. Consequently, to assess overnight patient-machine 'agreement' and efficacy of ventilation, more specific and sophisticated monitoring is needed. The effectiveness of NIV might therefore be more correctly assessed by sleep studies than by daytime assessment. The most available and simple monitoring can be done from flow and pressure curves from the mask or the ventilator circuit. Examination of these tracings can give useful information to evaluate if the settings chosen by the operator were the right ones for that patient. However, as NIV allows a large range of ventilatory parameters and settings, it is mandatory to have information about this to better understand patient-ventilator interaction. Ventilatory modality, mode of triggering, pressurisation slope, use or not of positive end expiratory pressure and type of exhalation as well as ventilator performances may all have physiological consequences. Leaks and upper airway resistance variations may, in turn, modify these patterns. This article discusses the equipment available for NIV, analyses the effect of different ventilator modes and settings and of exhalation and connecting circuits on ventilatory traces and gives the background necessary to understand their impact on nocturnal monitoring of NIV

Impact of leaks and ventilation parameters on the efficacy of humidifiers during home ventilation for tracheostomized patients: a bench study

International audienceBackground: During invasive ventilation, the upper airway is bypassed and no longer participates in humidification of inspired gases, which is essential to avoid harmful consequences such as endotracheal tube occlusion. In the case of increased air flow, especially in the presence of leaks (intentional or unintentional), the humidification provided by humidifiers may become ineffective. The objective of this bench study was to evaluate the quality of humidification provided by heated humidifiers under various home ventilation conditions.Methods: Five heated humidifiers were tested in eight configurations combining circuit (expiratory valve or vented circuit), tidal volume (600 or 1000 mL) and presence of unintentional leak. Absolute humidity (AH) was measured at the upstream of the test lungs, which were placed in a 34 °C environmental chamber in order to simulate body temperature.Results: The AH measured in the valve circuit ranged between 30 mg/L and 40 mg/L and three out of the five humidifiers achieved an AH higher than the recommended level (33 mg/L). With the vented circuit without unintentional leak, when tidal volume was set at 600 mL, all humidifiers reached an AH higher than 33 mg/L except one device; when the tidal volume was set at 1000 mL and unintentional leak was present, four out of the five humidifiers provided an AH lower than 33 mg/L.Conclusion: This study shows that, except under certain home ventilation conditions, such as high tidal volumes with unintentional leak in vented circuit, most heated humidifiers ensure sufficient humidification to avoid the risk of side effect in patients

Modes ventilatoires et réglages en ventilation non invasive: retentissement sur les évènements respiratoires et implications dans leur identification

Comparé au mode invasif, la ventilation non invasive (VNI) a deux caractéristiques : sa nature non hermétique et le fait que le couple poumon–ventilateur ne peut pas être considéré comme un modèle à un seul compartiment de par l’interposition de la voie aérienne supérieure (VAS). À l’initiation de la VNI, les réglages du ventilateur sont déterminés sur la clinique et les variations de la gazométrie diurne. Cependant la VNI s’applique principalement pendant le sommeil, et une évaluation nocturne est nécessaire pour estimer la « bonne entente » patient–ventilateur. Le monitorage le plus avéré est apporté par les courbes de débit et pression au masque. Cependant, la VNI permet une large gamme de réglages. Il est nécessaire de les connaître pour comprendre l’interaction patient–ventilateur. Le mode ventilatoire, le type de déclenchement, la pente, l’utilisation d’une pression positive expiratoire et le type d’exhalation mais aussi les performances du ventilateur peuvent avoir des retentissements. Des fuites et des variations de résistance des VAS peuvent aussi modifier ces courbes. Cet article discute du matériel disponible pour la VNI, analyse l’effet des modes ventilatoires, réglages et systèmes d’exhalation sur les tracés. Son but : donner les bases nécessaires pour comprendre leur impact sur le monitorage de la VNI.Compared with invasive ventilation, non-invasive ventilation (NIV) has two unique characteristics: its non-hermetic nature and the fact that the ventilator-lung assembly cannot be considered as a single-compartment model because of the presence of variable resistance represented by the upper airways. When NIV is initiated, the ventilator settings are determined empirically based on clinical evaluation and blood gas variations. However, NIV is predominantly applied during sleep. Consequently, to assess overnight patient-machine "agreement" and efficacy of ventilation, more specific and sophisticated monitoring is needed. The effectiveness of NIV might therefore be more correctly assessed by sleep studies than by daytime assessment. The simplest monitoring can be done from flow and pressure curves from the mask or the ventilator circuit. Examination of these tracings can give useful information to evaluate if the settings chosen by the operator were the right ones for that patient. However, as NIV allows a large range of ventilatory parameters and settings, it is mandatory to have information about this to better understand patient-ventilator interaction. Ventilatory modality, mode of triggering, pressurization slope, use or not of positive end expiratory pressure and type of exhalation as well as ventilator performances may all have physiological consequences. Leaks and upper airway resistance variations may, in turn, modify these patterns. This article discusses the equipment available for NIV, analyses the effect of different ventilator modes and settings and of exhalation and connecting circuits on ventilatory traces and gives the background necessary to understand their impact on nocturnal monitoring of NIV