Search Tag: mechanical ventilation
Risk Factors for ARDS in Mechanically Ventilated Adults
2019 16 Dec
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is an inflammatory process that could lead to diffuse oedema and hypoxaemic respiratory failure. It is also characterised by increased pulmonary vascular permeability, increased lung weight, and loss of aerated lung. In low and middle-income countries, ARDS mortality ranges from 26 to 58%. A large majority... Read more
Virtual Reality in the Intensive Care Unit: State of Play and Future Prospects
2019 26 Sep
An overview of the practical uses of virtual reality in the ICU and the benefits it can provide. One way of defining virtual reality (VR) is as the set of techniques and systems required for human beings to enter computer-generated synthetic worlds. VR techniques are based on real-time interaction with an artificial immersive world using behavioural... Read more
When is mechanical ventilation harmful to the lung?
2018 07 Nov
Ventilator-induced lung injury is a multifaceted problem that has progressively become a preoccupation for intensivists and anaesthesiologists. Interestingly, it has taken many years to realise that mechanical ventilation, a life-saving technique, could also induce harm, according to an Editorial article published online in the journal Anesthesiology.... Read more
Vasopressors contribute to ICU-associated weakness
2018 13 Sep
In the ICU setting, nearly 25 percent of patients who receive mechanical ventilation develop muscular weakness severe enough to impair their quality of life. New research shows that mechanically ventilated patients treated with vasopressor medications had a more than three-fold increase in the odds of developing ICU-associated weakness. Notably,... Read more
Inspiratory muscle training for ICU patients: first practical guide
2018 24 Jul
Inspiratory muscle weakness is a known consequence of prolonged mechanical ventilation, and there is emerging evidence that specific inspiratory muscle training (IMT) can ameliorate this weakness. Australian researchers recommend a multidisciplinary approach to IMT for patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). "Effective IMT requires a... Read more
Making mechanical ventilation safe for ARDS
2018 08 Jan
The acute respiratory distress (ARDS) lung is usually characterised by a high degree of inhomogeneity. Indeed, the same lung may show a wide spectrum of aeration alterations, ranging from completely gasless regions, up to hyperinflated areas, explain Luciano Gattinoni, Tommaso Tonetti and Michael Quintel in an article published in the journal Critical... Read more
Outcomes after 1 week of mechanical ventilation for patients and families
2017 15 Sep
We review recent findings on outcomes in adults after mechanical ventilation for one week or more in the intensive care unit, exploring both patients and their family perspectives. Critical illness survivorship carries a burden of physical and neuropsychological disabilities (Griffiths and Jones 1999; Herridge and Cameron 2013). These determine... Read more
Ultrasound-guided mechanical ventilation
2017 15 Sep
Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is now a tool used worldwide, integrating clinical assessment of the critically ill. In this review, we focus on lung, diaphragm and cardiac ultrasound in the management of the mechanically ventilated patient. Ultrasound provides useful information to assess and monitor lung aeration, to set mechanical ventilation... Read more
Targeted Therapeutic Mild Hypercapnia After Cardiac Arrest
2017 28 May
Cardiac arrest (CA) causes ischaemic brain injury and persistent cerebral hypoperfusion and cerebral hypoxia during the early post-resuscitation period. PaCO2 is the major physiological regulator of cerebral blood flow, is a modifiable component of care and mild hypercapnia may lead to improved neurological outcomes for resuscitated CA survivors.... Read more