Biofeedback and hypnosis in weaning from mechanical ventilators

Weaning patients from mechanical ventilation can be hindered by both physical and psychologic factors. Biofeedback has been used successfully as an adjunct in difficult weaning problems. We have used a combination of hypnosis and biofeedback to wean a patient with neurologic disease who previously failed weaning by standard procedures. A 30-year-old woman with respiratory failure secondary to multiple sclerosis with transverse myelitis was given eight sessions of biofeedback over 12 days in which the movements of her chest wall, as monitored by magnetometers, were displayed on an oscilloscope. The patient was praised for targeted respiratory rate, amplitude, and rhythm. These sessions included hypnosis in which the patient was given suggestions of well-being and that she could breathe as she had five years earlier. In this manner the patient was successfully weaned. Respiratory biofeedback and hypnosis appear to be useful adjuncts in weaning patients from ventilators.