Patient-ventilator Interaction During Non-invasive Ventilation with the Helmet Interface

Non-invasive ventilation (NIV) for the treatment of acute and chronic respiratory failure has achieved an increasingly important role over the last decade. Until the mid-eighties, mechanical ventilation in intensive care unit (ICU) patients with acute respiratory failure was generally delivered invasively via an endotracheal or tracheostomy tube. With growing knowledge of pathophysiology, it became apparent that there are also risks and complications, not only related to mechanical ventilation itself (volu- and barotrauma), but especially if mechanical ventilation is delivered invasively, such as the increased rate of nosocomial pneumonias [1]. Hoarseness, sore throat or vocal cord dysfunction becoming apparent after extubation may also result in long term complications [2]. Therefore, the application of NIV techniques seems logical.