Articles: mechanical-ventilation.
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Multicenter Study
Ventilation Management and Outcomes for Subjects With Neuromuscular Disorders Admitted to ICUs With Acute Respiratory Failure.
Patients with neuromuscular disorders (NMD) share the risk of acute respiratory failure (ARF) leading to ICU admissions. Noninvasive ventilation (NIV) is often proposed as an alternative to invasive ventilation. This study describes clinical features, ventilation management, and outcomes of subjects with NMD admitted to ICU and managed for ARF. ⋯ The ICU mortality of NMD subjects with ARF was low, with no impact of bulbar muscles involvement. NIV was proposed for approximately half of the subjects, and it was more effective when ARF was not attributed to bulbar musculature involvement. The long-term outcome was good.
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We hypothesized that the lack of benefit of setting a low versus a high PEEP in patients with ARDS may be due in part to differences in the dynamic behavior of the expiratory valve in ventilators. We tested this hypothesis by conducting a bench comparison of the dynamic behavior of expiratory valves on ICU ventilators currently in use. ⋯ The resistance of active expiratory valves differed significantly between the 7 ICU ventilators tested.
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To minimize ventilator-induced lung injury, the primary clinical focus is currently expanding from measuring static indices of the individual tidal cycle (eg, plateau pressure and tidal volume) to more inclusive indicators of energy load, such as total power and its elastic components. Morbid obesity may influence these components. We characterized the relative values of elastic subcomponents of total power (ie, driving power and dynamic power) in subjects with severe hypoxemia, morbid obesity, or their combination. ⋯ In mechanically ventilated subjects, stress and energy-based ventilator-induced lung injury indicators are influenced by the relative contributions of chest wall and lung to overall respiratory mechanics. Numerical guidelines for ventilator-induced lung injury risk must strongly consider adjustment for these elastic characteristics in morbid obesity.
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The ratio of dead space to tidal volume (VD/VT) is a clinically relevant parameter in ARDS; it has been shown to predict mortality, and it determines the extent to which extracorporeal CO2 removal reduces tidal volume (VT) and driving pressure (ΔP). VD/VT can be estimated with volumetric capnography, but empirical formulas using demographic and physiological information have been proposed to estimate VD/VT without the need of additional equipment. It is unknown whether estimated and measured VD/VT produce similar estimates of the predicted effect of extracorporeal CO2 removal on ΔP. ⋯ VD/VT and VD,est/VT showed low levels of agreement and cannot be used interchangeably in clinical practice. Nevertheless, the predicted decrease in ΔP due to extracorporeal CO2 removal was similar when computed from either estimated or measured VDalv/VT.
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Treatments for ARDS that improve patient outcomes include use of lung-protective ventilation, prone ventilation, and conservative fluid management. Implementation of ARDS protocols via educational programs might improve adherence and outcomes. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of an ARDS protocol implementation on outcomes and adherence with ARDS guidelines. ⋯ ARDS protocol implementation was associated with improved survival and rate of adherence.