Abstract
The upper airways are part of the respiratory system. The nose, lips and trachea are essential contributors to overall respiratory resistance and the conditioning of the inspired air. They play a crucial role during noninvasive ventilation (NIV), and their patency can determine success or failure. Their involvement represents a substantial difference from invasive ventilation, where the endotracheal tube bypasses the upper airways and the endotracheal tube cuff closes. During NIV, on the other hand, the airways play an essential role and determine with their characteristics the efficiency of the ventilation delivered and the ventilator’s settings. NIV can, in turn, influence their tone and their calibre. Their physiology has been the subject of multiple studies evaluating patency and collapse factors. Pathological states and the sleep-wake rhythm influence patency and collapse. Different models can explain the behaviour of the upper airways, including the “balance of forces” or the balance between the suction pressure of the airways during inspiration and the dilator tone of the upper airways. In this chapter, all these aspects will be analysed, which, as anticipated, are of fundamental importance in applying the NIV.
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Abbreviations
- ARF:
-
Acute respiratory failure
- EMG:
-
Electromyography
- GG:
-
Genioglossal activity
- NIV:
-
Noninvasive ventilation
- OSA:
-
Obstructive sleep apnoea
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Fiorentino, G., Lanza, M., Annunziata, A. (2023). Relationship Between Mask Interface and Upper Airway Anatomy and Physiology. In: Esquinas, A.M., De Vito, A., Barbetakis, N. (eds) Upper Airway Disorders and Noninvasive Mechanical Ventilation. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-32487-1_11
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