Effect of telemonitoring on the rate of dropout during home non-invasive ventilation: a retrospective study using a...

Telemonitoring (TM) of home non-invasive ventilation (NIV) has been shown to facilitate home/outpatient therapy set-up. However, the impact of long-term TM on therapy dropouts, compliance and leak control has not yet been clearly determined. This study evaluated whether the NIV dropout rate was reduced by TM combined with remote patient support compared with a non-telemonitoring (NTM) pathway.

Retrospective cohort study.

Data were obtained from all agencies of a single home care provider in France.

Adults with chronic respiratory failure (n=659) who started nocturnal NIV between January 2017 and December 2019 and had ≥8 days of NIV therapy (51% male; mean age 68.5±13.8 years; 35.5% on long-term oxygen therapy) were included. The TM group included 275 patients who spent ≥80% of the follow-up using TM, and the NTM group included 384 patients who had 0 to ≤10 days of telemonitoring during follow-up.

The primary outcome was the rate of NIV dropouts at 1 year (ie, treatment discontinuation, excluding deaths). Secondary outcomes included therapy compliance and leaks.

82 patients died during follow-up. Significantly fewer patients in the TM vs NTM group had dropped out of NIV therapy at 1 year (13% vs 34%; p<0.001). After adjustment for age, sex, NIV usage at 1-month follow-up and the main underlying respiratory disease, TM was significantly associated with a lower risk of dropout (HR 0.33, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.49; p<0.001). At 1, 4, 8 and 12 months, a greater proportion of patients in the TM vs NTM group had NIV usage of >4 hours/day and control of leaks.

In patients starting home NIV, TM with home care provider first-line support was associated with a lower therapy dropout rate at 1 year, and better compliance and leak control, compared with standard follow-up.