Adjuvant Therapy: YiqiDitanTongfu Decoction With External Diaphragm Pacer for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Patients With Difficulty Weaning From Mechanical Ventilation.

CONTEXT: Global morbidity from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is high worldwide. Diaphragm pacing (DP) can maintain the natural, negative pressure breathing of COPD patients with diaphragmatic muscle dysfunction. The YiqiDitanTongfu (YDTF) decoction has been used clinically with COPD patients to help them to wean from mechanical ventilation, with their ventilation functions being improved and the success rate of weaning being largely increased.

OBJECTIVE: The study intended to investigate the combined therapeutic effects of external DP and the YDTF decoction for COPD patients who have had difficulty weaning from mechanical ventilation.

DESIGN: This study was a retrospective cohort study.

SETTING: The study occurred at the Hebei General Hospital and Hebei Province Chest Hospital (Hebei Province, Shijiazhuang, China).

PARTICIPANTS: Participants were 90 patients with COPD + type 1 respiratory failure, 101 patients with COPD + Type 2 respiratory failure, and 96 patients with COPD at the compensated stage.

INTERVENTION: The participants were randomly divided into 3 groups: (1) traditional treatment (control group), (2) traditional treatment plus treatment with a diaphragm pacemaker (DP group), and (3) traditional treatment plus treatment with a DP and a YDTF decoction (DP + YDTF group). All treatments occurred for 12 d.

OUTCOME MEASURES: Relevant outcomes were measured and compared at baseline and postintervention, including the rapid shallow breathing index, tidal volume, maximum inspiratory pressure, degree of diaphragmatic muscle activity, maximum expiratory pressure, the successful rates of weaning from mechanical ventilation, the potential of hydrogen, the partial pressure of oxygen, partial pressure of carbon dioxide, and oxygen saturation.

RESULTS: The patients treated with the DP plus the YDTF decoction were more successful in weaning from mechanical ventilation than those treated with DP. Of the patients with COPD + type 1 respiratory failure, 86.67% succeeded vs 70.00% of the DP patients. Of patients with COPD + type 2 respiratory failure, 87.88% succeeded vs 79.41% of the DP patients.

CONCLUSION: The DP plus the YDTF concoction acted as a successful treatment for heart failure caused by CPOD in comparison with the DP or YDTF alone, providing evidence that the DP + YDTF concoction can serve as a competitive method for helping COPD patients to wean from mechanical ventilation.