• Physiological parameters: vital signs, dyspnea , intubation rate
• Safety parameters: adverse events , duration of hospitalisation , mortality 5 days and 30 days after the end of the one hour study period.

Evaluate efficacy and safety of CPAP in a randomised standard treatment controlled study, in out-of-hospital patients with acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema.

Acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema is a frequent medical emergency. Several studies have shown that continuous positive airway pressure is effective in acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema, through improvement in gas exchange, reduction in intubation rate and a trend towards reduced mortality. CPAP is usually obtained with a hermetic nasal or facemask witch has an expiratory valve to maintain a positive pressure at the end of the expiration. With this support, the patient does not receive any assistance with respiration.

The available data about CPAP concern patients hospitalised in cardiology intensive care units, in resuscitation areas or in emergency departments.

We will undertake a controlled prospective randomised trial to investigate whether the early use of CPAP would improve oxygenation and survival, as compared with standard medical therapy in patients with acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema.

This study will include 124 patients over 18 years of age, suffering of acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema, with a respiratory rate greater than 25 bpm and oxygen saturation less than 90 %. The patients will be include just after the beginning of the episode, in prehospital mobile intensive car unit (SAMU) and will be all admitted in resuscitation area in a central hospital. They will be randomly assigned to CPAP or conventional oxygen therapy. The randomisation sequence is generated by the random numbers table. Closed envelopes containing the allocated treatment will be stored in the emergency department and will be opened when the patient is included.

Oxygen saturation (by pulse-oxymetry), heart rate, respiratory rate, dyspnea, blood pressure will be measured every 15 min during the transport to the intensive care unit and every hour. The blood gazes will be measured at the arrival. The intubation rate, the duration of the hospitalisation and the mortality in the thirty days following initial treatment will be noted.

• Drug: Standard treatment: isosorbide dinitrate
• Drug: furosemide

• Crane SD, Elliott MW, Gilligan P, Richards K, Gray AJ. Randomised controlled comparison of continuous positive airways pressure, bilevel non-invasive ventilation, and standard treatment in emergency department patients with acute cardiogenic pulmonary oedema. Emerg Med J. 2004 Mar;21(2):155-61.
• Bellone A, Monari A, Cortellaro F, Vettorello M, Arlati S, Coen D. Myocardial infarction rate in acute pulmonary edema: noninvasive pressure support ventilation versus continuous positive airway pressure. Crit Care Med. 2004 Sep;32(9):1860-5.
• Mehta S, Jay GD, Woolard RH, Hipona RA, Connolly EM, Cimini DM, Drinkwine JH, Hill NS. Randomized, prospective trial of bilevel versus continuous positive airway pressure in acute pulmonary edema. Crit Care Med. 1997 Apr;25(4):620-8.
• L'Her E, Duquesne F, Paris A, Mouline J, Renault A, Garo B, Boles JM. [Spontaneous positive end-expiratory pressure ventilation in elderly patients with cardiogenic pulmonary edema. Assessment in an emergency admissions unit] Presse Med. 1998 Jun 20;27(22):1089-94. French.
• Evans TW. International Consensus Conferences in Intensive Care Medicine: non-invasive positive pressure ventilation in acute respiratory failure.Organised jointly by the American Thoracic Society, the European Respiratory Society, the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine, and the Societe de Reanimation de Langue Francaise, and approved by the ATS Board of Directors, December 2000. Intensive Care Med. 2001 Jan;27(1):166-78. Review.
• Pang D, Keenan SP, Cook DJ, Sibbald WJ. The effect of positive pressure airway support on mortality and the need for intubation in cardiogenic pulmonary edema: a systematic review. Chest. 1998 Oct;114(4):1185-92. Review.
• Lenique F, Habis M, Lofaso F, Dubois-Rande JL, Harf A, Brochard L. Ventilatory and hemodynamic effects of continuous positive airway pressure in left heart failure. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 1997 Feb;155(2):500-5.
• [No authors listed] The treatment of heart failure. Task Force of the Working Group on Heart Failure of the European Society of Cardiology. Eur Heart J. 1997 May;18(5):736-53. No abstract available.

Inclusion Criteria:

• patient with supposed acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema, defined as acute dyspnea associated with a past of cardiomyopathy ischemia and physical signs consistent with pulmonary edema.
• patient giving written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

• Glasgow score < 10
• Acute myocardial infarction ; ventricular arrhythmia ; pneumothorax ; evidence of pneumonia ; immediate need for intubation ; heart failure or respiratory stop witch requires a reanimation ; cardiogenic shock (systolic blood pressure < 90 mmhg)
• Any neurological impairment that would prevent the protocol compliance
• participation in another study throughout this one
• women pregnant or nursing
• vomiting
• patient with an history of gastric surgery (< 8days)