Primate Pleuroesophageal Tissue Barrier Frequency Response and Esophageal Pressure Waveform Bandwidth in Health and Acute Lung Injury

Background Dynamic intraesophageal pressure (Pes) is used to estimate intrapleural pressure (Ppl) to calculate lung compliance and resistance. This study investigated the nonhuman primate Ppl–Pes tissue barrier frequency response and the dynamic response requirements of Pes manometers. Methods In healthy monkeys and monkeys with acute lung injury undergoing ventilation, simultaneous Ppl and Pes were measured directly to determine the Ppl–Pes tissue barrier amplitude frequency response, using the swept-sine wave technique. The bandwidths of physiologic Pes waveforms acquired during conventional mechanical ventilation were calculated using digital low-pass signal filtering. Results The Ppl–Pes tissue barrier is amplitude-uniform within the bandwidth of conventional Pes waveforms in healthy and acute lung injury lungs, and does not significantly attenuate Ppl–Pes signal transmission between 1 and 40 Hz. At Pes frequencies higher than conventional clinical regions of interest the Ppl–Pes barrier resonates significantly, is pressure amplitude dependent at low-pressure offsets, and is significantly altered by acute lung injury. Allowing for 5% or less Pes waveform error, the maximum Pes bandwidths during conventional ventilation were 1.9 Hz and 3.4 Hz for physiologic and extreme-case waveforms in healthy lungs and 4.6 Hz and 8.5 Hz during acute lung injury. Conclusions In monkeys, the Ppl–Pes tissue barrier has a frequency response suitable for Ppl estimation during low-frequency mechanical ventilation, and Pes manometers should have a minimum uniform frequency response up to 8.5 Hz. However, the Ppl–Pes tissue barrier adversely affects the accurate estimation of dynamic Ppl at high frequencies, with varied airway pressure amplitudes and offsets, such as the Ppl encountered during high-frequency oscillatory ventilation.