Intervention group
chest block
In addition to chest compression-decompression and chest block manoeuvres, participants in the intervention group received the same usual care as the control group. These manoeuvres were performed sequentially, in a random order, twice a day, after the usual care, during the morning and afternoon sessions, and throughout the participant’s period of mechanical ventilation. Chest compression-decompression and chest block are passive manual manoeuvres for lung expansion. The rationale behind these manoeuvres is that they improve ventilation by modulating transpulmonary pressure, reducing pleural pressure, and redirecting gas flow to specific lung areas.