Topics in acute respiratory distress syndrome: the patient needs our tender loving and care.

This editorial introduces a four-part series on acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) that will cover a wide range of related topics in reviews written by internationally renowned experts. The first part of this series will be published in this issue of the European Respiratory Review by GUÉRIN [1] on the role of prone positioning. This will be followed by articles on the topics of: 1) the role of imaging in the diagnosis and management of ARDS; 2) the novel ventilatory aspects involved in managing patients with ARDS; and 3) how to manage a patient failing conventional ventilation with extracorporeal support, in particular, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).