Acute Respiratory Failure And ­Mechanical Ventilation

Patients with acute respiratory failure present to the emergency department (ED) on a regular basis, and emergency physicians (EPs) are expected to be skilled in endotracheal intubation. Historically, although a significant portion of emergency medicine residency training focuses on airway management, extended management of the ventilated patient has received relatively short shrift. Recent data indicate that not only is endotracheal intubation one of the most commonly performed ED procedures, but also that in the initial hours of care, it is also often the EP rather than the intensivist who provides the bulk of critical care to the patient. It is therefore critical that EPs are skilled in ongoing management of the ventilated patient in the early hours as inappropriate management of the ventilator or sedation/analgesia can have a significant impact on complications such as ventilator-induced lung injury, ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), ventilator weaning, and delirium. This review outlines basic strategies for the physiologic management of respiratory failure patients to reduce periintubation complications and discuss ventilation strategies, appropriate use of analgesia/seda