Home non-invasive ventilation (NIV) adherence for chronic respiratory failure treatment of obesity hypoventilation syndrome (OHS) vs. chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD)

Background: OHS and COPD are both common respiratory conditions that can lead to chronic hypercapnic respiratory failure with the need for domiciliary NIV. Variability of NIV practice is a known issue. The aim of this study was to investigate differences regarding baseline characteristics and adherence between both conditions. Method: A retrospective analysis of patients observed in our chronic respiratory failure clinic between 2016 and 2018 was performed. Patients with OHS and COPD were selected and compared regarding baseline characteristics and adherence at the first evaluation after NIV setup. Adherence to treatment was evaluated by the mean use hours per night. Results: 94 patients were included. 57 were OHS and 37 were COPD patients. Baseline characteristics according to each group are summarised in table 1. There were statistically significant differences between gender, prevalence of heart failure, BMI, EPAP and pCO2 value. A tendency to poor adherence in COPD patients was observed. Conclusion: The tendency to poor compliance to NIV of COPD patients may justify the higher pCO2 values found and contribute to the difficulty of demonstrating NIV benefits in these patients in several studies. New strategies to improve adherence should be researched.