Prophylactic noninvasive ventilation after extubation in high-risk patients without hypercapnia

The beneficial effects of prophylactic noninvasive ventilation (NIV) after extubation in patients without hypercapnia are uncertain. Our objective was to assess the effects of prophylactic NIV on reintubation among patients without hypercapnia at the time of extubation.

Post hoc analysis of two multicenter clinical trials including high-risk patients (i.e., patients older than 65 years or with underlying cardiac/respiratory disease). Our analysis focused on the 829 patients without hypercapnia (PaCO₂ ≤ 45 mmHg), the day of extubation who received NIV alternating high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) oxygen or HFNC alone after extubation. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients who required reintubation within seven days following extubation. We used G-computation to robustly estimate the marginal causal effect of treatment on the risk of reintubation.

After extubation, 540 patients (65%) received NIV + HFNC while 289 (35%) received HFNC alone. The reintubation rate at day 7 was 11.8% [95% CI 9.4-14.8%] with NIV + HFNC versus 17.6% [95% CI 13.7-22.5%] with HFNC alone (difference, - 5.8% [95% CI - 11.2 to -0.8%]; p = 0.021). Using G-computation, NIV + HFNC was more effective than HFNC alone in reducing the risk of reintubation, with an estimated difference of - 5.6% [95% CI - 11.0 to - 0.5%]. Reintubation rates were also significantly lower with NIV + HFNC than with HFNC alone at 48 h, 72 h, and until ICU discharge.

For high-risk patients, but without hypercapnia on the day of extubation, the use of prophylactic NIV alternating with HFNC after extubation significantly decreases the risk of reintubation as compared to HFNC alone.