Association of alveolar recruitment maneuvers and prone position in acute respiratory disease syndrome patients Associação das manobras de recrutamento alveolar e posição prona na síndrome do desconforto respiratório agudo

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is the clinical presentation of an acute pulmonary injury. It is pathologically represented by diffuse alveolar damage and pathophysiologically by development of acute non-cardiogenic pulmonary edema due to increased alveolar-capillary membrane permeability.(1,2) It may be due to pulmonary origin, such as diffused lung infection, gastric content aspiration, or to extra-pulmonary causes such as septic syndrome and poly-transfusion, among others.(2,3) According to the American-European Consensus Conference,(4) ARDS is defined as an acute onset respiratory failure characterized at chest X-ray, by bilateral lung infiltrate compatible with lung edema; severe hypoxemia with the partial oxygen pressure/fraction of inspired oxygen rate (PaO2/ FIO2) ≤ 200; wedge pulmonary artery pressure ≤ 18 mmHg or lack of left Daniela Caetano Costa1, Eduardo Rocha2, Tatiane Flores Ribeiro3