Ten things to know about mechanical ventilation for the obese patient

Abstract

Severe obesity affects both respiratory mechanics and pulmonary gas exchange during mechanical ventilation. The particular anatomy and respiratory physiology of the obese patient cause specific problems for mechanical ventilation with postural and technical issues, and impose tailored adjustments of the ventilator settings. The latter aims at re-cruiting the lungs by an open-lung approach combined with a low-tidal volume protec-tive mechanical ventilation to prevent gravitational atelectasis and ventilator-induced lung injuries. Through a ten things to know about… format, this article gives us an in-sight into the understanding of obese patient’s management from intubation to difficult weaning from mechanical ventilation.