Intermittent positive pressure ventilation through an endotracheal or tracheostomy tube has been the mainstay of respiratory assistance for several decades. Some patients have been discharged home with a positive pressure device and tracheostomy but the number treated by these means in Britain has always been small.' Securing adequate gas exchange is usually easy and differs very little from th...

Over the past few decades, invasive positive pressure ventilation, usually applied via an endotracheal tube, has been the standard treatment for acute respiratory failure [1–3]. However, intubation and mechanical ventilation is associated with significant morbidity, including upper airway trauma and infections [4–7]; indeed, it is the single most important predisposing factor for nosocomial pne...

Background: Noninvasive positive-pressure ventilation (NPPV) appears to be of benefit in the treatment of patients with acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema and may reduce mortality. Aim of the Work: To determine whether NPPV of immediate benefit, in adults with acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema and whether there are important differences in outcome associated with this method of treatment regardi...

The function of the diaphragm and other respiratory muscles during exercise in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) remains controversial and few data exist regarding respiratory muscle pressure generation in this situation. The inspiratory pressure/time products of the oesophageal and transdiaphragmatic pressure, and the expiratory gastric pressure/time product during exhaustive treadm...

These are preliminary observations of the introduction of a new technique of noninvasive positive pressure respiratory support for patients with subacute or chronic respiratory failure. Clinical situations where intubation or tracheostomy may have been performed were managed by intermittent positive pressure ventilation via nasal access (NIPPV) with a CPAP mask, or a custom constructed Vel-Foam...

Negative-pressure ventilation: is there still a role? A. Corrado, M. Gorini. #ERS Journals Ltd 2002. ABSTRACT: Negative-pressure ventilation (NPV) was the primary mode of assisted ventilation for patients with acute respiratory failure until the Copenhagen polio epidemic in the 1950s, when, because there was insufficient equipment, it was necessary to ventilate patients continually by hand via ...