Long-term Mechanical Ventilation In Infants With Neuromuscular Disease

Abstract ———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— Seven children with neuromuscular disease were placed on mechanical ventilation before the age of 2 years. The outcome for these patients was variable and did not correlate with primary diagnosis. There appeared to be a high correlation between the incidence of electrocardiogram changes and death. Our experience demonstrates that there was a high mortality rate (57%) in neuromuscular patients supported by mechanical ventilation before the age of 2 years. (J Child Neurol 1987;2:30-32). Because of recent advances in technology,patients with neuromuscular disease fre-quently choose mechanical ventilation to prolong survival and improve quality of life. 1,2 Portable ven-tilators allow patients to leave the hospital and to conduct productive lifestyles. Children must rely on their guardians to make such choices for them, but there are few guidelines. One important issue is whether the use of mechanical ventilation during infancy actually does prolong survival or improv