Mechanical Ventilation in ARDS: Quo Vadis?

Contemplating the future should be grounded in history. The rise of post-polio ICUs was inextricably related to mechanical ventilation. Critically ill patients who developed acute respiratory failure often had "congestive atelectasis" (ie, a term used to describe ARDS prior to 1967). Initial mechanical ventilation strategies for treating this condition and others inadvertently led to ventilator-induced lung injury. Both injurious ventilation and later use of overly cautious weaning practices resulted from both limited technology and understanding of ARDS and other aspects of critical illness. The resulting misperceptions, misconceptions, and missed opportunities took decades to rectify and in some instances still persist. This suggests a reluctance to acknowledge that all therapeutic strategies reflect the historical period in which they were developed and the corresponding limited understanding of ARDS pathophysiology at that time. We are at the threshold of a revolutionary moment in critical care. The confluence of enormous clinical data production, massive computing power, advances in understanding the biomolecular and genetic aspects of critical illness, and the emergence of neural networks will have enormous impact on how critical care is practiced in the decades to come. Therefore, it is imperative we understand the long-crooked path needed to reach the era of protective ventilation in order to avoid similar mistakes moving forward. The emerging era is as difficult to fathom as our current practices and technologies were to those practicing 60 years ago. This review explores the history of mechanical ventilation in treating ARDS, describes current protective ventilation strategies, and speculates how ARDS management might look 20 years from now.