[Home mechanical Ventilation - Concepts and Therapy Recommendations]

The prognosis of patients receiving home mechanical ventilation is very heterogeneous and depends on the underlying disease, the degree of respiratory dependency and the comorbidities. Due to the severe chronic diseases, the initiation of a long-term NIV must be done during an inpatient treatment. Two recently published randomized controlled trials using more aggressive forms of NPPV targeted at normalizing hypercapnic PaCO₂ values, showed improved long term survival also in patients with an underlying diagnosis of COPD. Consequently, the number of patients receiving home mechanical ventilation has dramatically increased in recent years and more and more outpatient settings has been established without scientific evidence. Nevertheless, beside reliable care structures, ethical aspects and health related quality of life are of great importance in the context of home mechanical ventilation.