Respiratory Management of Patients With Neuromuscular Weakness: An American College of Chest Physicians Clinical Practice Guideline and Expert Panel Report

BACKGROUND

Respiratory failure is a significant concern in neuromuscular diseases (NMDs). This CHEST guideline examines the literature on the respiratory management of patients with NMD to provide evidence-based recommendations.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS

An expert panel conducted a systematic review addressing the respiratory management of NMD and applied the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations approach for assessing the certainty of the evidence and formulating and grading recommendations. A modified Delphi technique was used to reach a consensus on the recommendations.

RESULTS

Based on 128 studies, the panel generated 15 graded recommendations, one good practice statement, and one consensus-based statement.

INTERPRETATION

Evidence of best practices for respiratory management in NMD is limited and is based primarily on observational data in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The panel found that pulmonary function testing every 6 months may be beneficial and may be used to initiate noninvasive ventilation (NIV) when clinically indicated. An individualized approach to NIV settings may benefit patients with chronic respiratory failure and sleep-disordered breathing related to NMD. When resources allow, polysomnography or overnight oximetry can help to guide the initiation of NIV. The panel provided guidelines for mouthpiece ventilation, transition to home mechanical ventilation, salivary secretion management, and airway clearance therapies. The guideline panel emphasizes that NMD pathologic characteristics represent a diverse group of disorders with differing rates of decline in lung function. The clinician's role is to add evaluation at the bedside to shared decision-making with patients and families, including respect for patient preferences and treatment goals, considerations of quality of life, and appropriate use of available resources in decision-making.

Daytime alternatives for non-invasive mechanical ventilation in neuromuscular disorders

Mechanical ventilation in recent years has benefited from the development of new techniques and interfaces. These developments allowed clinicians to offer increasingly personalised therapies with the combination of different complementary techniques for treating respiratory insufficiency in patients with neuromuscular diseases. The mouthpiece ventilation, intermittent abdominal pressure ventilator and the negative pressure ventilation can offer many patients alternative therapy options when ventilation is required for many hours a day. In this non-systematic review, we will highlight the use of alternative methods to non-invasive mechanical ventilation at positive pressure in neuromuscular patients, to ensure the optimal interface for each patient.

Mouthpiece ventilation in neuromuscular disorders: Narrative review of technical issues important for clinical success

In neuromuscular disorders (NMDs), nocturnal non-invasive ventilation (NIV) via a nasal mask is offered when hypercapnic respiratory failure occurs. With disease progression, nocturnal NIV needs to be extended into the daytime. Mouthpiece ventilation (MPV) is an option for daytime NIV. MPV represents a difficult task for home ventilators due to rapidly changing load conditions resulting from intermittent connections and disconnections from MPV circuit. The 252nd ENMC International Expert Workshop, held March 6th to 8th 2020 in Amsterdam, reported general guidelines for management of daytime MPV in NMDs. This report could not present all the detail regarding the technical issues important for clinical success of MPV. Based on the expert workshop discussions and the evidence from existing studies, the current narrative review aims to identify the technical issues of MPV and offers guidance via a decisional algorithm and educational figures providing relevant information that is important for successful implementation of MPV.

Daytime noninvasive ventilatory support for patients with ventilatory pump failure: a narrative review

Over the past three decades, the use of noninvasive ventilation or "NIV" to assuage symptoms of hypoventilation for patients with early onset or mild ventilatory pump failure has been extended to up to the use of continuous noninvasive ventilatory support (CNVS) at full ventilatory support settings as a definitive alternative to tracheostomy mechanical ventilation. NVS, along with mechanical insufflation-exsufflation, now provides a noninvasive option for the management of both chronic and acute respiratory failure for these patients. The most common diagnoses for which these methods are useful include chest wall deformities, neuromuscular diseases, morbid obesity, high level spinal cord injury and idiopathic, primary or secondary disorders of the ventilatory control. Thus, NVS is being used in diverse settings: critical care units, medical wards, at home, and in extended care. The aim of this review is to examine the techniques used for daytime support.