METHODS: This is a retrospective cohort study. Participants were patients with sepsis receiving high-flow nasal catheter (HFNC) device or NPPV within 24 hours after weaning from MV. The primary outcome was tracheal re-intubation within 72 hours after extubation. Secondary outcomes included: oxygenation index, complication rate, patient comfort evaluation, HFNC/NPPV treatment time, ICU length of stay (LOS), ICU mortality, and in-hospital 28-day mortality.
RESULTS: A total of 283 patients were included in the study with 167 in the HFNC group and 116 in the NPPV group. The re-intubation rates after extubation in both groups were respectively 4.2% and 5.2% without significant difference. Patients in the HFNC group experienced lower incidence of delirium, reflux aspiration, facial pressure ulcer and other complications, and higher score of patients comfort than that in the NPPV group. There was no significant difference in ICU LOS, ICU mortality and in-hospital 28-day mortality between the two groups.
CONCLUSIONS: HFNC and NPPV have similar efficacy in the sequential treatment of sepsis patients after weaning from MV. Compared with NPPV, those extubated to HFNC had lower rate of complications such as reflux aspiration and facial pressure ulcers. The patients extubation to HFNC is more comfortable (and associated with less delirium) than to NPPV.