Respiratory Muscle Structure and Function in Mechanically Ventilated Patients and Long-term Outcomes

Air is normally pumped in and out of the lungs by the muscles that contribute to inhalation and exhalation, called the respiratory muscles. The abdominal muscles help by forcing air out of your lungs during exhalation; whereas the diaphragm, the main muscle used for breathing, contracts to get air into the lungs during inhalation. With mechanical ventilation, respiratory muscles are able to rest and recover while the breathing machine takes over; however, this may cause respiratory muscle weakness. Patients who develop weakness of these muscles may require more assistance from the ventilator and take longer to recover their ability to breathe without assistance. The impact of this phenomenon on long-term outcomes is uncertain. The RESPIRE study is designed to characterize how respiratory muscles change during mechanical ventilation and to evaluate the impact on long term quality of life. An additional objective of this study is to examine novel measures obtained from automated functions of a ventilator, that may better predict success from weaning from mechanical ventilation.