Hypoventilation

About: Hypoventilation is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 1772 publications have been published within this topic receiving 40799 citations. The topic is also known as: respiratory depression.

Non-invasive Mechanical Ventilator Care for the Patients with Advanced Neuromuscular Disease

Abstract: Objective: The usage of mechanical ventilator has been an issue in advanced stage of most neuromuscular diseases. The patients experience hypoventilation symptoms and usually die from pulmonary complications at last. Besides traditional invasive mechanical ventilation, non-invasive intermittent positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) has provided an alternative treatment option. We evaluated the effects of NIPPV. Method: We applied NIPPV method to the patients with advanced neuromuscular disease who were hospitalized due to ventilatory failure, who visit our outpatient clinic due to hypercapnic symptoms, or who showed hypercapnia on a routine follow-up. To evaluate ventilatory status, blood gas tensions were analyzed by the arterial blood gas analysis and/or pulse-oxymeter and capnometer. Overnight pulseoxymeter monitorings were done whenever necessary. Results: Thirty patients were managed with NIPPV successfully. In five cases, invasive IPPV with tracheostomy at admission was switched to NIPPV. Three patients who had been intubated to receive IPPV were transferred to NIPPV without being tracheostomized. Conclusion: NIPPV can be used safely and effectively as an alternative method of ventilatory support for the patients with advanced neuromuscular disease who show ventilatory failure. It would relieve symptoms and signs of hypoventilation and prevent the acute respiratory muscle decompensation, if applied before overt ventilatory failure.

Errors in Management of Patients Dying of Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease

Abstract: Recent advances in the understanding of chronic obstructive lung disease have led to the general acceptance of several principles of therapy. The primary aim of management is the maintenance of adequate alveolar ventilation. To this end, satisfactory therapy requires the prompt treatment of pulmonary infection and the avoidance of respiratory-depressant drugs. Severe hypoxemia must be alleviated by oxygen, and life threatening hypoventilation corrected by mechanical ventilation. The measures alone often are effective in relieving heart failure secondary to the primary lung disease. The extent to which adherence to the above therapeutic principles contributes to patient survival has not been objectively evaluated. This report analyzes the medical management of a group of patients dying of chronic obstructive disease in the medical wards of two teaching hospitals. The findings provide the basis for revising management of these patients. Materials and Methods Selection of Patients.— The records of all patients dying with diagnosed

Central type of sleep apnea syndrome caused by unilateral lateral medullary infarction

Abstract: We reported here a 64-year-old man with a central apnea resulted from unilateral medullary infarction. He was admitted because of cerebellar ataxia, dysarthria and dysphasia of abrupt onset. After the injection of diazepam for alcohol forbidden syndrome, he induced complete apnea and required the endotracheal intubation. At the spontaneous respiration under room air, his arterial blood gas showed hypercapnea without hypoxemia, and he fell into severe hypoventilation when hypnotic drug was injected. Respisomnogram revealed the frequent presence of central apnea both while he was awake and asleep. MRI demonstrated an abnormal high intensity area on T2 weighted image at the right lateral medulla just below the ponto-medullary junction. At autopsy, areas of the infarction were limited within the right lateral medulla, including lateral portion of the medullary reticular formation, the ambigual nucleus, one part of the solitary nuclear complex, the inferior cerebellar peduncle and the spinal trigeminal nucleus. However, the dorsomotor nucleus of vagus was completely free from the infarct lesion. There was no other lesion within central nervous system. Such a distribution seemed the minimal extent of the lesion responsible for central, apnea compared to the previous reports. We suggest that central apnea occurs not infrequently in the cases of Wallenberg's syndrome.

Airway obstruction in congenital central hypoventilation syndrome

Abstract: Congenital central hypoventilation syndrome (CCHS) is the failure of the autonomic system to control adequate ventilation while asleep with preserved ventilatory response while awake. We report a case of a patient with CCHS who presented with intrathoracic and extrathoracic airway obstruction after tracheostomy tube decannulation and phrenic nerve pacer placement. Nocturnal polysomnography (NPSG) revealed hypoxia, hypercapnia and obstructive sleep apnoea, which required bilevel positive airway pressure titration. Airway endoscopy demonstrated tracheomalacia and paretic true vocal cords in the paramedian position during diaphragmatic pacing. Laryngeal electromyography demonstrated muscular electrical impulses that correlated with diaphragmatic pacer settings. Thus, we surmise that the patient's upper and lower airway obstruction was secondary to diaphragmatic pacer activity. Thorough airway evaluation, including NPSG and endoscopy, may help identify the side effects of diaphragmatic pacing, such as airway obstruction, in patients with CCHS.