[Artificial respiration in status asthmaticus. Five years experience in an intensive care unit]

A restrospective study was performed on patients presenting with status asthmaticus and admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of the Provincial Clinical and Surgical Teaching hospital, Pinar del Río, within a 5-year period and who underwent mechanical ventilation representing 32.65% of the overall number of admissions in the ICU. Fifty seven percent of the patients were women with an average age of 48 years. The mean intubation time was 60 hours. At admission, the patient's clinical condition was assessed, as well as the cause for intubation and ventilatory parameters that are being used up to date. Complications and the mortality rate which increased to 9.38% were also analyzed. All results were compared to the ones from other authors, as well as from the national and international literature.