Safety of Mechanical Insufflation-exsufflation and Hypertonic Saline

Conventional catheter suctioning of respiratory tract secretions is a mandatory procedure in intubated patients. Poor tolerance, pain and other, sometimes severe, lung and cardiovascular complications may occur during suctioning. Mechanical insufflation-exsufflation (MIE), coupled with hypertonic saline (HS), may improve efficacy airway clearance and reduce risk of the maneuver. However, safety of MIE and HS in intubated patients have not been studied appropriately, which justifies a randomized evaluation compared to conventional secretion suctioning.