A Management Guideline for Obesity-Hypoventilation Syndromes

A survey of our pulmonary service revealed little consensus as to the definition, work-up, and management of hypoventilation, more often encountered in the presence of obesity. If hypoventilation is defined by an arterial carbon dioxide level above 45mmHg, 22% of artrial blood gas samples over a 5-month period met this criterium, suggesting a high Oany-causeO prevalence. This article presents the rationale and explanation for a management protocol for obesity-hypoventilation that is currently being assessed in the VA Medical Center and Case Western Reserve University training program in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine.