Respiration; international review of thoracic diseases
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Acute antiarrhythmic effects of bi-level positive airway pressure ventilation in patients with acute respiratory failure caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a randomized clinical trial.
Cardiac arrhythmias are common in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and acute respiratory failure (ARF) and may be life threatening. Recently, non-invasive positive pressure ventilation has been advanced as a useful tool in COPD patients with ARF. This method can affect global cardiac performance through its effects on many determinants of cardiac function and may be helpful in reducing arrhythmias. ⋯ Cardiac arrhythmias decreased significantly in both groups after the start of both treatments, although data obtained from group 1 revealed a more important statistical significance. Our data seem to support the hypothesis that BiPAP may be a useful tool in managing COPD patients with ARF and mild arrhythmias.