RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 A prospective study of quality of life in ALS patients treated with noninvasive ventilation
JF Neurology
JO Neurology
FD Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
SP 153
OP 156
DO 10.1212/WNL.57.1.153
VO 57
IS 1
A1 R. A. Lyall
A1 N. Donaldson
A1 T. Fleming
A1 C. Wood
A1 I. Newsom–Davis
A1 M. I. Polkey
A1 P. N. Leigh
A1 J. Moxham
YR 2001
UL http://n.neurology.org/content/57/1/153.abstract
AB Noninvasive positive pressure ventilation prolongs survival in ALS but its effect on quality of life is unknown. The authors prospectively studied quality of life using the SF-36 questionnaire in a cohort of 16 ventilated patients with ALS. Noninvasive positive pressure ventilation improved scores in the “Vitality” domain by as much as 25%, for periods of up to 15 months, despite disease progression. Noninvasive positive pressure ventilation did not cause reduced quality of life, as any fall in scores in the ventilated group were comparable to those seen in a control group. In conclusion, noninvasive positive pressure ventilation enhances quality of life when used to treat sleep-disordered breathing in patients with ALS.