[Acceptance and long-term results of home mechanical ventilation in various thoracic diseases].
BACKGROUND
Home mechanical ventilation (HMV) is an important therapy for patients with respiratory insufficiency on the basis of neuromuscular diseases (NMD), chest wall deformities (CWD) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).


METHODS
We retrospectively analyzed the long-term results of all 144 patients (CWD = 47, COPD = 54, NMD = 43) who underwent a trial of non-invasive HMV from March 1990 to September 1997.


RESULTS
Twenty-eight patients did not accept the HMV (19%), 7 with CWD (15%), 17 with COPD (32%) and 4 with NMD (9%). Thirty-nine of 113 patients, who accepted HMV, completed nasal ventilation for a minimum of 1 year. For all 3 groups the hypercapnia improved significantly (CWD 58 +/- 6 to 48 +/- 4 mm Hg, p < 0.001, COPD 61 +/- 7 to 46 +/- 6 mm Hg, p < 0.001, NMD 53 +/- 8 to 42 +/- 6 mm Hg, p < 0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
HMV improves the hypercapnic ventilatory failure independent of the underlying disease. The rate of acceptance is lower in patients with COPD in comparison to CWD and NMD.
Schucher
B
B
Zentrum für Pneumologie und Thoraxchirugie, Krankenhaus Grosshansdorf. berndschucher.@yahoo.com
Hein
H
H
Magnussen
H
H
D006701:Home Nursing; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D012121:Respiration, Artificial; D013896:Thoracic Diseases / Q000628:therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
Akzeptanzraten und Langzeitergebnisse der Heimbeatmung bei verschiedenen Erkrankungen.