Mechanical Insufflation Exsufflation, Syringomyelia, and Headache

Mechanical insufflation exsufflation creates cough flows to clear central airways secretions for patients with ineffective cough flows. At times, patients with even potentially effective spontaneous cough flows can have pain that prevents effective coughing. We describe a patient with Arnold-Chiari syndrome, syringomyelia, and hydrocephalus who had nine episodes of pneumonia through the age of 9 yrs, and cough associated headaches, who upon using mechanical insufflation exsufflation had no subsequent pneumonias for at least the next 17 yrs and no headaches when using it for coughing.