Current opinion in critical care
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Curr Opin Crit Care · Feb 2024
ReviewSetting positive end-expiratory pressure: does the 'best compliance' concept really work?
Determining the optimal positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) setting remains a central yet debated issue in the management of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).The 'best compliance' strategy set the PEEP to coincide with the peak respiratory system compliance (or 2 cmH 2 O higher) during a decremental PEEP trial, but evidence is conflicting. ⋯ The traditional 'best compliance' strategy for determining optimal PEEP settings in ARDS carries risks and overlooks some key physiological aspects. The advent of new technologies and methods presents more reliable strategies to assess recruitment and overdistention, facilitating personalized approaches to PEEP optimization.
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Curr Opin Crit Care · Feb 2024
ReviewOptimal positive-end expiratory pressure weaning in acute respiratory distress syndrome patients.
Positive-end expiratory pressure (PEEP) is a tool in managing acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). In this review, we discuss the various approaches to weaning PEEP after the acute phase of ARDS. ⋯ Although further prospective studies are warranted, we should consider using a physiologic approach to PEEP weaning in ARDS rather than a one size fits all model, which is currently the standard used in many clinical trials and throughout many ICUs.
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Curr Opin Crit Care · Feb 2024
ReviewAirway pressure release ventilation for lung protection in acute respiratory distress syndrome: an alternative way to recruit the lungs.
Airway pressure release ventilation (APRV) is a modality of ventilation in which high inspiratory continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) alternates with brief releases. In this review, we will discuss the rationale for APRV as a lung protective strategy and then provide a practical introduction to initiating APRV using the time-controlled adaptive ventilation (TCAV) method. ⋯ APRV using the TCAV method is a paradigm shift in protective lung ventilation, which primarily aims to stabilize the lung and gradually reopen collapsed tissue to achieve lung homogeneity eliminating the main mechanistic drivers of VILI.
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Curr Opin Crit Care · Feb 2024
ReviewSetting positive end-expiratory pressure: role in diaphragm-protective ventilation.
With mechanical ventilation, positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) is applied to improve oxygenation and lung homogeneity. However, PEEP setting has been hypothesized to contribute to critical illness associated diaphragm dysfunction via several mechanisms. Here, we discuss the impact of PEEP on diaphragm function, activity and geometry. ⋯ Setting PEEP could play an important role in both lung and diaphragm protective ventilation. Both high and low PEEP levels could potentially introduce or exacerbate diaphragm myotrauma. Today, the impact of PEEP setting on diaphragm structure and function is in its infancy, and clinical implications are largely unknown.
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Curr Opin Crit Care · Feb 2024
ReviewSetting positive end-expiratory pressure in the severely obstructive patient.
The response to positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) requiring mechanical ventilation depends on the underlying pathophysiology. This review focuses on the pathophysiology of COPD, especially intrinsic PEEP (PEEPi) and its consequences, and the benefits of applying external PEEP during assisted ventilation when PEEPi is present. ⋯ In patients with COPD and dynamic hyperinflation receiving assisted mechanical ventilation, the application of low levels of external PEEP can minimize work of breathing, facilitate ventilator triggering and improve patient-ventilator interaction.