Subject–ventilator synchrony during neural versus pneumatically triggered non-invasive helmet ventilation

OBJECTIVE: Patient–ventilator synchrony during non-invasive pressure support ventilation with the helmet device is often compromised when conventional pneumatic triggering and cycling-off were used. A possible solution to this shortcoming is to replace the pneumatic triggering with neural triggering and cycling-off—using the diaphragm electrical activity (EA(di)). This signal is insensitive to leaks and to the compliance of the ventilator circuit. DESIGN: Randomized, single-blinded, experimental study. SETTING: University Hospital. PARTICIPANTS AND SUBJECTS: Seven healthy human volunteers. INTERVENTIONS: Pneumatic triggering and cycling-off were compared to neural triggering and cycling-off during NIV delivered with the helmet. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: Triggering and cycling-off delays, wasted efforts, and breathing comfort were determined during restricted breathing efforts (<20% of voluntary maximum EA(di)) with various combinations of pressure support (PSV) (5, 10, 20 cm H(2)O) and respiratory rates (10, 20, 30 breath/min). During pneumatic triggering and cycling-off, the subject–ventilator synchrony was progressively more impaired with increasing respiratory rate and levels of PSV (p < 0.001). During neural triggering and cycling-off, effect of increasing respiratory rate and levels of PSV on subject–ventilator synchrony was minimal. Breathing comfort was higher during neural triggering than during pneumatic triggering (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The present study demonstrates in healthy subjects that subject–ventilator synchrony, trigger effort, and breathing comfort with a helmet interface are considerably less impaired during increasing levels of PSV and respiratory rates with neural triggering and cycling-off, compared to conventional pneumatic triggering and cycling-off. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00134-008-1163-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.