Acute Effects of Mechanical Insufflation-Exsufflation on the Breathing Pattern in Stable Subjects With Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is characterized by progressive degeneration, wasting, and weakness of skeletal musculature, including respiratory muscles. Cough is also compromised with disease progression. Among cough-augmentation techniques, mechanical insufflation-exsufflation (MI-E) has demonstrated several clinical benefits in patients with chronic airway secretion obstruction and muscular weakness. In clinical practice, the use of MI-E in DMD patients is also suggested when they are stable with no airway infections. However, there is a paucity of studies that consider the effect of MI-E specifically on stable DMD patients who have adapted to the use of MI-E.