Traditionally, nasal oxygen therapy has been delivered at low flows through nasal cannulae. In recent years, nasal cannulae designed to administer heated and humidified air/oxygen mixtures at high flows (up to 60 L/min) have been gaining popularity. These high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) systems enhance patient comfort and tolerance compared with traditional high-flow oxygenation systems, such as...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW To discuss the recent literature concerning the use of noninvasive ventilation for hypoxemic acute respiratory failure. RECENT FINDINGS The benefits of noninvasive ventilation for patients with hypoxemic acute respiratory failure are unclear. In immunocompromised patients and following thoracic surgery, there is a strong rationale for using noninvasive ventilation to treat a...

The objective of this study was to assess the impact of fiber-optic laryngoscopy (FOL) on the weaning process from mechanical ventilation in critically ill patients with a positive cuff leak test (CLT) as compared with the current recommended strategy based on corticosteroids.In this prospective observational pilot study conducted over a 1-year period in a 15-bed ICU, CLT was systematically per...

THE USE OF NONINVASIVE POSItive-pressure ventilation (NPPV) in acute respiratory failure to avoid the need for endotracheal intubation was first reported in the late 1980s by Meduri et al. The apparent successful application of this form of ventilation in this and other case series has led to more intensive scrutiny of this technology in randomized controlled trials. It appears that successful ...

BACKGROUND The present study was performed to assess the prognosis of patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) for community acquired pneumonia (CAP) after implementation of new processes of care. METHODS Two groups of patients with CAP were admitted to a 16-bed multidisciplinary ICU in an urban teaching hospital during two different periods: the years 1995-2000, corresponding to th...