PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Seymour, Christopher W
AU  - Christie, Jason D
AU  - Gaughan, Christina A
AU  - Fuchs, Barry D
TI  - Evaluation of a New Method for Measurement of Minute Ventilation Recovery Time
DP  - 2006 Feb 01
TA  - Respiratory Care
PG  - 133--139
VI  - 51
IP  - 2
4099  - http://rc.rcjournal.com/content/51/2/133.short
4100  - http://rc.rcjournal.com/content/51/2/133.full
AB  - PURPOSE: To determine if the measurement of minute ventilation recovery time (V˙ERT), a recently proposed predictor of extubation outcome, can be reproduced using a more practical, simpler method. METHODS: A case series with convenience sampling was performed in the surgical intensive care unit of a tertiary-care hospital. Nineteen patients were enrolled during weaning from mechanical ventilation, prior to the initial extubation attempt. Within-subject comparisons of V˙ERT were performed, using 2 alternative methods for measuring baseline V˙E and one alternative method for determining the threshold for recovery of V˙E during the final spontaneous breathing trial prior to extubation. Comparison methods for baseline V˙E included an 8-hour average and the last V˙E measurement prior to the spontaneous breathing trial. The alternative threshold for defining recovery of V˙E was 100% of the baseline value (vs 110% in the original method). RESULTS: The study subjects were primarily cardiac surgery patients (63%) and were ventilated for a median of 5 days prior to extubation. V˙ERT calculated using the 8-hour average or the last V˙E measurement prior to the spontaneous breathing trial as baseline, and a threshold of 100% of baseline V˙E to define recovery most closely approximated V˙ERT obtained by the original method and similarly classified patients at high risk for reintubation (kappa statistic = 0.78 ± 0.2). CONCLUSIONS: V˙ERT can be determined using a simpler method for measuring both baseline V˙E and the recovery threshold. These methodological modifications may increase the feasibility of measuring V˙ERT, while reproducing the results obtained by the original method.