Modeling the pharyngeal pressure during adult nasal high flow therapy

Subjects receiving nasal high flow (NHF) via wide-bore nasal cannula may experience different levels of positive pressure depending on the individual response to NHF. In this study, airflow in the nasal airway during NHF-assisted breathing is simulated and nasopharyngeal airway pressure numerically computed, to determine whether the relationship between NHF and pressure can be described by a simple equation. Two geometric models are used for analysis. In the first, 3D airway geometry is reconstructed from computed tomography images of an adult nasal airway. For the second, a simplified geometric model is derived that has the same cross-sectional area as the complex model, but is more readily amenable to analysis. Peak airway pressure is correlated as a function of nasal valve area, nostril area and cannula flow rate, for NHF rates of 20, 40 and 60 L/min. Results show that airway pressure is related by a power law to NHF rate, valve area, and nostril area.