Noninvasive Ventilation and Thoracic-abdominal Kinematics in Heart Failure Patients

Introduction: Noninvasive ventilation (NIV) has been used to minimize such impairment and increasing ventilator reserve in individuals with heart failure. Aim: To analyze thoracoabdominal kinematics (TK) in individuals with HF associated to cardiomegaly after using NIV. Methods: A randomized crossover clinical trial with allocation consisted of two experimental phases: NIV and control, 7 days apart of each other. During NIV phase, 30 minutes of bi-level ventilation was performed. Any type of ventilator support was offered during control phase. Optoeletronic plethismography was performed to asses TK.