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Review
. 2016 Nov 18:6:111-118.
doi: 10.2147/DNND.S87323. eCollection 2016.

Respiratory management of patients with neuromuscular disease: current perspectives

Gerald Pfeffer  1   2 , Marcus Povitz  3
Affiliations
Review

Respiratory management of patients with neuromuscular disease: current perspectives

Gerald Pfeffer et al. Degener Neurol Neuromuscul Dis. .

Abstract

Neuromuscular ventilatory weakness can be difficult to recognize because the symptoms can be nocturnal, nonspecific, or attributed to other conditions. The presence of respiratory muscle weakness suggests a number of possible heterogeneous conditions, including neurodegenerative, autoimmune, and genetic neuromuscular diseases. In some conditions, disease-modifying management exists, but in the absence of such intervention, supportive respiratory therapy can improve quality of life and survival. In this review, we discuss the differential diagnosis and diagnostic approach to chronic neuromuscular respiratory weakness. We also review the clinical assessment and management of respiratory failure in these conditions.

Keywords: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; hereditary myopathy; myopathy; noninvasive ventilation; respiratory failure.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

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