Effect of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure at 10 cmH2O on gas exchange in obese patients.

Abstract

Obesity represents a major health burden and the impact of obesity on the respiratory system has been thoroughly reviewed in a wide data of literature. On the other hand pulmonary embolism is a diagnostic challenge particularly in obese individual and although symptoms and signs are common between healthy obese and patients suspected with pulmonary embolism, the number of obese patients was under represented in numerous studies assessing the role of clinical prediction rules and diagnostic algorithms in ruling out pulmonary embolism. The aim of our work was to determine initially the prevalence of hypoxemia in an adult obese population with a BMI > 30 kg/m2. Secondly, investigate the role of the non invasive continuous positive airway pressure to reverse this hypoxemia and safely exclude the presence of pulmonary embolism. Lastly, we sought to record the incidence of pulmonary embolism in obese subjects. A total number of 350 patients with a BMI > 30 kg/m2 were included in this study, 67% of them were females and 33% were males. Pulmonary functions test result