NCT01046175

Effect of Air-stacking on Peak Cough Flow in Patients With Acute Cervical or High Thoracic Spinal Cord Injury

Effect of Two Different Air-stacking Techniques, Combined With Manually Assisted Cough, on Peak Cough Flow (PCF) in Patients With Acute Cervical or High Thoracic Spinal Cord Injury

• Status: Withdrawn
• Phase: Phase 2
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 10 (estimated)
• Sponsor: Ullevaal University Hospital · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

Respiratory complications continue to be one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in people with spinal cord injury, especially among cervical and higher thoracic injuries. Both inspiratory and expiratory function are often severely decreased, leading to respiratory complications, such as atelectasis, pneumonia and ventilatory failure. The prevention of these respiratory complications needs to begin immediately after injury. To achieve effective expelling of secretions before they form mucus plugs, it is essential to improve patients ability to cough. Manually assisting the cough is one way of increasing cough flow, but an effective cough also requires adequate lung volumes. The emphasis should therefore be on expansion of the lungs before coughing. One way of expanding the lungs is by air-stacking. In air-stacking insufflations are stacked in the lungs to maximally expand them. Cough can be valued by measuring Peak Cough Flow (PCF). By combining air-stacking with manually assisted cough the PCF can be increased sufficiently. The aim of this study is to compare the effect of two different air-stacking techniques on PCF, air-stacking on a respirator versus air-stacking with a manual resuscitator.

Conditions

• Spinal Cord Injury
• Tetraplegia

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
PROCEDURE	Air-stacking with a manual resuscitator	Stacking air into the lungs up to maximal insufflation capacity (MIC)with a manual resuscitator
PROCEDURE	Air-stacking with ventilator	Stacking air into the lungs to maximal insufflation capacity (MIC) with ventilator

Timeline

• Start date: 2010-02-01
• Primary completion: 2011-02-01
• Completion: 2011-06-01
• First posted: 2010-01-11
• Last updated: 2010-11-15

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Norway