Thirteen intubated, high dependency patients with neurological injuries were studied in order to investigate the short term respiratory effects of neurophysiological facilitation and passive movement on tidal volume (VT), minute ventilation (VE) respiratory rate (VR) and oxygen saturation (SpO2). The subjects were studied under four conditions: no intervention (control) and during periods of neurophysiological facilitation, passive movement and sensory stimulation. All periods were standardised to three minutes duration and all parameters were recorded before and after each intervention. Neurophysiological facilitation produced significant increases (p < 0.01) in VE and SpO2 (p < 0.05) when compared with control values, with an overall mean increase in VE of 14.6%. Similarly, passive movement increased VE (p < 0.01) by an average of 9.8% and also increased SpO2 (p < 0.01). In contrast, sensory stimulation produced significant increases (p < 0.01) in SpO2 with control levels, with no significant change in VT or VE. There was no significant difference in VR with all treatments. This study provides preliminary evidence of improved short term ventilatory function following neurophysiological facilitation, independent of generalised sensory stimulation, which has not been previously examined in the literature, supporting its use in the management of high dependency neurological patients.

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