Metabolic Cost of IMT

Mechanical ventilation is a life-saving intervention used worldwide. Despite this, critically ill patients who undergo mechanical ventilation commonly develop muscle weakness; this includes limb muscle weakness and diaphragmatic weakness. Physiotherapy interventions on critically ill patients include; mobilisation to improve limb muscle strength and function, and inspiratory muscle training which aims to target the diaphragm and accessory inspiratory muscles with the goal of improving endurance and strength. Whilst these interventions are standard practice in intensive care, little is known about the physiological load imposed on patients. The purpose of this study is to assess the feasibility of using indirect calorimetry (measured using the Beacon Caresystem) to measure the metabolic cost (oxygen consumption \[VO2\] and carbon dioxide production \[VCO2\]) of inspiratory muscle training and physical rehabilitation in mechanically ventilated intensive care patients.