Non-Invasive Ventilation Via a Helmet Device for Patients Respiratory Failure

Respiratory failure is often treated with endotracheal intubation and mechanical ventilation.
Although, the institution of mechanical ventilation is considered life saving, the associated
complications of tracheal stenosis, ventilator associated pneumonia, barotrauma , and
neuromuscular weakness are not without considerable morbidity and mortality.

Non-invasive ventilation has demonstrated significant benefit in patients with hypercapnic
respiratory failure from COPD, acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema, and hypoxemic respiratory
failure in immunocompromised patients.

Despite the advantages of non-invasive ventilation via facemask, some patients fail because
of mask intolerance and severity of disease. Further limitation to facemask non-invasive
ventilation is that the seal integrity is lost when higher pressures are required.
Unfortunately, certain types of respiratory failure such as that due to hypoxemia or shock
may require such higher pressures.

In an attempt to improve patient tolerability and deliver higher pressures, a transparent
helmet has been proposed as a novel interface for non-invasive ventilation. It encloses the
entire head and neck of the patient. The design of the helmet confers some important
advantages: 1) the transparency allows the patient to interact with the environment; 2) the
lack of contact to the face lowers the risk of skin necrosis; 3) the helmet avoids problems
of leaking with higher airway pressures that are seen with the face mask; 4) it can be
applied to any patient regardless of facial contour.

Inclusion Criteria:

- Patients aged ≥18 years of age who require noninvasive ventilation via facemask for
>8hours

- Intact airway protective gag reflex

- Able to follow instructions

Exclusion Criteria:

- Cardiopulmonary arrest

- Glasgow coma scale <8

- Absence of airway protective gag reflex

- Elevated intracranial pressure

- Tracheostomy

- Upper airway obstruction

- Pregnancy.

- Patients who refuse to undergo endotracheal intubation, whatever the initial
therapeutic approach