Helmet or facemask: which breathing aid wins for low oxygen?
NCT ID NCT06210386
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study looked at whether a helmet or a facemask is better at helping people with acute low-oxygen respiratory failure breathe easier. Twenty adults each tried both devices in a random order, and researchers measured how hard their breathing muscles worked and how well their lungs expanded. The goal was to understand which method might be more effective, not to test a new treatment.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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20 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Jan 2024
- Finished
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Sep 2025
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Acute hypoxemic respiratory failure and PaO2/FiO2\<200 mmHg * PaCO2\<45 mmHg * Respiratory failure not caused by exacerbation of chronic pulmonary disease, cardiac failure or fluid overload Exclusion Criteria: * Pregnancy * Contraindication to helmet or facemask noninvasive ventilation * Contraindication to esophageal manometry * Contraindication to electrical-impedance tomography monitoring * Recent surgery involving the abdomen or the thorax * Pneumothorax or documented barotrauma
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Fondazione Policlinico Universitaro A. Gemelli IRCCS
Rome, Italy
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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