A bstract Aim Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the most common intensive care unit (ICU)-acquired infection. The current study aimed to assess the efficacy of mechanical insufflation-exsufflation (MI-E) in preventing VAP in critically ill patients. Materials and methods This retrospective cohort study was conducted at the ICU of Chiba University Hospital between January 2014 and September 2017. The inclusion criteria were patients who required invasive mechanical ventilation ≥48 hours and those who underwent rehabilitation, including chest physical therapy (CPT). In 2015, the study institution started the use of MI-E in patients with impaired cough reflex. From January to December 2014, patients undergoing CPT were classified under the historical control group, and those who received treatment using MI-E from January 2015 to September 2017 were included in the intervention group. The patients received treatment using MI-E via the endotracheal or tracheostomy tube, with insufflation-exsufflation pressure of 15–40 cm H 2 O. The treatment frequency was one to three sessions daily, and a physical therapist who is experienced in using MI-E facilitated the treatment. Results From January 2015 to September 2017, 11 patients received treatment using MI-E. Of the 169 patients screened in 2014, 19 underwent CPT. The incidence of VAP was significantly different between the CPT and MI-E groups (84.2% [16/19] vs 26.4% [3/11], p = 0.011). After adjusting for covariates, a multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed, and results showed that the covariates were not associated with the incidence of VAP. Conclusion This retrospective cohort study suggests that the use of MI-E in critically ill patients is independently associated with a reduced incidence of VAP. Clinical significance Assessing the efficacy of MI-E to prevent VAP. How to cite this article Kuroiwa R, Tateishi Y, Oshima T, Inagaki T, Furukawa S, Takemura R, et al. Mechanical Insufflation-exsufflation for the Prevention of Ventilator-associated Pneumonia in Intensive Care Units: A Retrospective Cohort Study. Indian J Crit Care Med 2021;25(1):62–66.

The lifetime prevalence of low back pain is 83%. Since there is a lack of evidence for therapeutic effect by cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) or physical therapy (PT), it is necessary to develop objective physiological indexes and effective treatments. We conducted a prospective longitudinal study to evaluate the treatment effects of CBT, PT, and neurofeedback training (NFT) during alpha wave NFT. The early-chronic cases within 1 year and late-chronic cases over 1 year after the diagnosis of chronic low back pain were classified into six groups: Controls, CBTs, PTs, NFTs, CBT-NFTs, PT-NFTs. We evaluated the difference in EEG, psychosocial factors, scores of low back pain before/after the intervention. Therapeutic effect was clearly more effective in the early-chronic cases. We found that the intensity of alpha waves increased significantly after therapeutic intervention in the NFT groups, but did not have the main effect of reducing low back pain; the interaction between CBT and NFT reduced low back pain. Factors that enhance therapeutic effect are early intervention, increased alpha waves, and self-efficacy due to parallel implementation of CBT/PT and NFT. A treatment protocol in which alpha wave neurofeedback training is subsidiarily used with CBT or PT should be developed in the future.

Background Quantification of motor performance has a promising role in personalized medicine by diagnosing and monitoring, e.g. neurodegenerative diseases or health problems related to aging. New motion assessment technologies can evolve into patient-centered eHealth applications on a global scale to support personalized healthcare as well as treatment of disease. However, uncertainty remains on the limits of generalizability of such data, which is relevant specifically for preventive or predictive applications, using normative datasets to screen for incipient disease manifestations or indicators of individual risks. Objective This study explored differences between healthy German and Japanese adults in the performance of a short set of six motor tests. Methods Six motor tasks related to gait and balance were recorded with a validated 3D camera system. Twenty-five healthy adults from Chiba, Japan, participated in this study and were matched for age, sex, and BMI to a sample of 25 healthy adults from Berlin, Germany. Recordings used the same technical setup and standard instructions and were supervised by the same experienced operator. Differences in motor performance were analyzed using multiple linear regressions models, adjusted for differences in body stature. Results From 23 presented parameters, five showed group-related differences after adjustment for height and weight (R2 between .19 and .46, p<.05). Japanese adults transitioned faster between sitting and standing and used a smaller range of hand motion. In stepping-in-place, cadence was similar in both groups, but Japanese adults showed higher knee movement amplitudes. Body height was identified as relevant confounder (standardized beta >.5) for performance of short comfortable and maximum speed walks. For results of posturography, regression models did not reveal effects of group or body stature. Conclusions Our results support the existence of a population-specific bias in motor function patterns in young healthy adults. This needs to be considered when motor function is assessed and used for clinical decisions, especially for personalized predictive and preventive medical purposes. The bias affected only the performance of specific items and parameters and is not fully explained by population-specific ethnic differences in body stature. It may be partially explained as cultural bias related to motor habits. Observed effects were small but are expected to be larger in a non-controlled cross-cultural application of motion assessment technologies with relevance for related algorithms that are being developed and used for data processing. In sum, the interpretation of individual data should be related to appropriate population-specific or even better personalized normative values to yield its full potential and avoid misinterpretation.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to elucidate the age-related changes in the stability of the quiet standing posture based on the acceleration of the center of mass of each body segment under deteriorated somatosensory conditions. [Participants and Methods] The participants in this study were 18 healthy elderly persons and 11 healthy young adults. A foam surface was placed on the force plate for load-bearing onto the somatosensory system. The participants maintained a quiet position on the force plate under two conditions: a firm surface and a foam surface. The accelerations of the head, thorax, pelvis, and whole body center of mass when quiet standing in two conditions were measured by a motion capture system. In the statistical analysis, regarding the center of mass of each body segment, the interactions were examined by performing a two-way analysis of variance using age and surface condition as factors. [Results] A two-way analysis of variance detected an interaction between age and surface factors for anteroposterior acceleration at the center of mass of the head. For other body segments, interactions between the two factors were not detected. [Conclusion] The results of anteroposterior acceleration at the center of mass of the head suggest that under conditions of deteriorated somatosensory function in the lower limbs, minute anteroposterior position adjustment of the head is an essential characteristic of the standing posture control mechanism in the elderly.

Mechanical insufflation‐exsufflation (MI‐E) is an effective airway clearance device for impaired cough associated with respiratory muscle weakness caused by neuromuscular disease. Its complications on the respiratory system, such as pneumothorax, are well‐recognized, but the association of the autonomic nervous system dysfunction with MI‐E has never been reported. We herein describe two cases of Guillain–Barré syndrome with cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction during MI‐E: a 22‐year‐old man who developed transient asystole and an 83‐year‐old man who presented with prominent fluctuation of blood pressure. These episodes occurred during the use of MI‐E with abnormal cardiac autonomic testing, such as heart rate variability in both patients. While Guillain–Barré syndrome itself may cause cardiac autonomic dysfunction, MI‐E possibly caused or enhanced the autonomic dysfunction by an alternation of thoracic cavity pressure. The possibility of MI‐E‐related cardiovascular complications should be recognized, and its appropriate monitoring and management are necessary, particularly when used for Guillain–Barré syndrome patients.