The Effect of Noninvasive Positive Pressure Ventilation on Pneumonia Hospitalizations in Children With Neurological Disease

The aim of this retrospective single-institution observational study was to identify whether the frequency of hospitalizations for pneumonia would change before and after the initiation of noninvasive positive pressure ventilation in children with neurological conditions. Included patients were 1 to 18 years old with an underlying neurological disease and had been prescribed nocturnal noninvasive positive pressure ventilation. The authors excluded patients with a tracheostomy or those who used noninvasive positive pressure ventilation solely for obstructive sleep apnea. A total of 14 patients were included in the study, among whom there was no significant change in the mean number of pneumonias 2 years before versus after the initiation of noninvasive positive pressure ventilation (mean difference = −0.714, standard deviation = 2.4, P = .312). These findings suggest that while noninvasive positive pressure ventilation may not reduce absolute pneumonia frequency, it may have the beneficial value of preventing an increase in the frequency of pneumonias over time, especially in children with progressive respiratory compromise.