Influence of an Inverse Pressure Ramp in Long-term Non-invasive Ventilation on Dyspnea in the Morning After Therapy

Einfluss Einer Inversen Druckrampe Bei Der Langzeit-Therapie Mit Nicht-invasiver Ventilation Auf Dyspnoe am Morgen Nach Therapie-Ende. Influence of an Inverse Pressure Ramp in the Long-term Therapy Mit Non-invasive Ventilation on Dyspnea in the Morning After Therapy.

Patients being treated with non-invasive home mechanical ventilation (NIV) may experience morning dyspnea after each night of NIV use, when the therapy is abruptly ended. This study aims to show that dyspnea intensity can be significantly reduced by a gentle NIV therapy end, delivered by a continuously decreasing pressure level (inverse pressure ramp) after therapy end in the morning, a feature called softSTOPP, which can configured in prismaVENT NIV devices. This could also improve therapy adherence.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Age ≥ 18 years
• Diagnosis of a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) with chronic hypercapnic insufficiency
• Therapy with prismaVENT 30, firmware V 3.3 or higher, mode S/T, stable device settings at the time of inclusion without need to adapt ventilation parameters
• May have co-existing obstructive sleep apnea syndrome
• Subjective dyspnea ≥3 (Borg scale) after end of ventilation therapy in the morning
• Written informed consent for study participation including data protection

Exclusion Criteria:

• Missing written informed consent for study participation including data protection
• Contraindication for positive airway pressure therapy
• Use of the softSTOPP feature before study inclusion
• Participation in another study, which influences NIV therapy by defining device settings or titration
• Concomitant oxygen therapy