During normal breathing, expiratory time is usually twice the inspiratory time. This means that the I:E ratio is 1:2, or 1/3rd to 2/3rd. If you try to find this setting on the ventilator during support ventilation, good luck with that. Someone has decided it's way more convenient to give this…

So we've talked about the importance of safe mechanical ventilation and one way of quantifying safe mechanical ventilation during pressure support. We've also discussed driving pressure as an important parameter during mechanical ventilation, as it is directly related to mortality. Now get this, it's possible to measure driving pressure during…

This article covers triggering, cycling and basic ventilator modes and settings. Consider a patient's respiratory rate of, for instance, 20 breaths per minute. One breath consists of an inhalation and exhalation. The ratio of inspiration to expiration is typically 1:2. This means that for 20 breaths per minute (i.e. 60…

Our lungs have 23 generations of airway branches. Surface area increases as we travel deeper within the lung. The functional unit of the lungs are the alveoli, responsible for oxygenation and ventilation, which together have a surface area of around 70 m². For healthy individuals, total lung capacity (TLC, after…

An important parameter to guide safe mechanical ventilation is driving pressure. In this article, we learn how to calculate driving pressure, its origin, and most importantly, how to use it in clinical practice. Driving pressure (DP or ΔP) is calculated by taking the difference between the pressure at end inspiration…

Patient Self Inflicted Lung Injury (PSILI) is a relatively new concept within mechanical ventilation. It implies that a patient can cause harm to their own lungs, creating barotrauma due to excessive transpulmonary pressure as a result of increased patient respiratory effort. In Pressure Support mechanical ventilation it's not always easy…

Dyssynchronies between inspiratory attempts of the patient and the inspiration by the ventilator could cause ventilator-induced lung injury (VILI). It is therefore important to recognize these dyssynchronies and act accordingly. On this page, you’ll find a quick overview of common dyssynchronies and how to treat them.