Year in review 2014: airway clearance

Abstract

The respiratory therapist has had integrated adjuncts to improve mucus clearance for decades. However, there is a lack of literature describing the impact of these interventions on specific patient populations, resulting in an inability to make recommendations about the use of devices and techniques. The purpose of this article is to review recent literature regarding airway clearance therapies in a manner that is most likely to have interest to the readers of Respiratory Care.

Keywords: airway clearance; chest physical therapy; high-frequency chest-wall compression; intrapulmonary ventilation; mechanical insufflation-exsufflation; positive expiratory pressure.