The Use of BiPAP on COPD Patients

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Introduction
BiPAP is a form of noninvasive mechanical ventilation used on patients that have acute respiratory failure. Many of these patients go on noninvasive ventilation due to COPD exacerbations that are infectious, with congestive heart failure, and ventilator parameters based on their clinical assessment and changes in arterial blood gases. Two different studies were conducted on COPD patients, using a BiPAP machine to improve exacerbations and their activities of daily living. There are many positive outcomes for using these noninvasive ventilators however when used incorrectly, negative outcomes or not changes at all are always possible.
Positive Use for COPD Exacerbations
Previous research used noninvasive ventilation to help those with COPD improve their altered level of consciousness by allowing the alveoli to be ventilated and move the trapped carbon dioxide out of the lungs. When too much carbon dioxide is in the blood, the gas moves through the blood-brain barrier and causes an acidosis within the body, because not enough carbon dioxide is being blown off through ventilation. The BiPAP machine allows positive pressure to enter the lungs, expand all the way to the alveoli, and create the movement of air and blood. Within the study, two different machines were used; a regular BiPAP ventilator and a bilevel positive airway pressure – spontaneous/timed with average volume assured pressure support, or AVAPS. The latter machine uses a setting for a set tidal volume and adjusts based on inspiratory pressure.
A total of 22 patients were admitted for the study with 11 in simply the BiPAP side and the other half for the BiPAP using the AVAPS. Every patient had to be in a select range of APACHE II score within 4, ag...

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...deem it necessary to enhance the person’s life and those around them.

Works Cited

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(2012). Effects of noninvasive ventilation on dynamic hyperinflation patients with
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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22441230.

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