Rationale for optimal ventilator settings in transplantation patients

The discovery that in a transplanted lung similarly to an ARDS lung, pulmon ary surfactant function is impaired, allows the insights gained from treati ng ARDS patients to benefit these patients. Especially the treatment of rep erfusion injury can be optimized by using modes of mechanical ventilation w hich are known to beneficially influence mortality of ARDS patients. Furthe rmore, especially in critically ill (transplantation) patients, optimalizat ion of ventilation will improve oxygenation and decrease the adverse effect s of ventilation, such as ventilation-associated pneumonia and possibly eve n multi-organ failure.