Abstract：Objective：To observe the effect of point application with Chinese herbal medicine for acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(AECOPD) complicated with respiratory failure. Methods： A total of 108 cases of patients with phlegm-heat obstructing the lung syndrome were randomly divided into the observation group and the control group， 54 cases in each group. Both groups were treated with symptomatic treatment including water， electrolytes and nutrition，oxygen therapy，anti- infection treatment，noninvasive ventilation，as well as corresponding nursing measures. The observation group was additionally treated with point application with Chinese herbal medicine. Both groups were treated for seven days. Before and after treatment， the severity of dyspnea was evaluated； the lung function including forced expiratory volume in one second(FEV1) and percentage of predicted value of FEV1(FEV1% )， as well as arterial blood gas analysis including partial pressure of oxygen(PaO2)， partial pressure of carbon dioxide(PaCO2) and oxygen saturation(SaO2) were detected；the main symptom scores were assessed. Results：After treatment for seven days，the severity of dyspnea in the two groups was relieved(P＜0.05)，and the severity in the observation group was lighter than that in the control group (P＜0.05). The PaO2 and SaO2 in the two groups were increased when compared with those before treatment(P＜0.01)，and PaCO2 was decreased(P＜0.01). The PaO2 and SaO2 in the observation group were higher than those in the control group(P＜0.05)，and PaCO2 was lower(P＜0.05). The FEV1 and FEV1% in the two groups were increased when compared with those before treatment(P＜0.01)，and the above indexes in the observation group were higher than those in the control group(P＜0.05). The scores of cough， expectoration， wheezing and shortness of breath in the two groups were decreased when compared with those before treatment(P＜0.01)，and the above scores in the observation group were lower than those in the control group(P＜0.01). Conclusion： Point application with Chinese herbal medicine in intervening patients with AECOPD complicated with respiratory failure can further relieve the severity of dyspnea and clinical symptoms， improve their lung function and control respiratory failure.