Mechanical ventilation or assisted ventilation is the medical term for using a ventilator machine to fully or partially provide artificial ventilation. Mechanical ventilation helps move air into and out of the lungs, with the main goal of helping the delivery of oxygen and removal of carbon dioxide. Mechanical ventilation is used for many reasons, including to protect the airway due to mechanical or neurologic cause, to ensure adequate oxygenation, or to remove excess carbon dioxide from the lungs. Various healthcare providers are involved with the use of mechanical ventilation and people who require ventilators are typically monitored in an intensive care unit.
Intensive care medicine, usually called critical care medicine, is a medical specialty that deals with seriously or critically ill patients who have, are at risk of, or are recovering from conditions that may be life-threatening. It includes providing life support, invasive monitoring techniques, resuscitation, and end-of-life care. Doctors in this specialty are often called intensive care physicians, critical care physicians, or intensivists.
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a type of respiratory failure characterized by rapid onset of widespread inflammation in the lungs. Symptoms include shortness of breath (dyspnea), rapid breathing (tachypnea), and bluish skin coloration (cyanosis). For those who survive, a decreased quality of life is common.
Pulmonology, pneumology or pneumonology is a medical specialty that deals with diseases involving the respiratory tract. It is also known as respirology, respiratory medicine, or chest medicine in some countries and areas.
Pulmonary hypertension is a condition of increased blood pressure in the arteries of the lungs. Symptoms include shortness of breath, fainting, tiredness, chest pain, swelling of the legs, and a fast heartbeat. The condition may make it difficult to exercise. Onset is typically gradual. According to the definition at the 6th World Symposium of Pulmonary Hypertension in 2018, a patient is deemed to have pulmonary hypertension if the pulmonary mean arterial pressure is greater than 20mmHg at rest, revised down from a purely arbitrary 25mmHg, and pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) greater than 3 Wood units.
A pneumonectomy is a surgical procedure to remove a lung. It was first successfully performed in 1933 by Dr. Evarts Graham. This is not to be confused with a lobectomy or segmentectomy, which only removes one part of the lung.
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) synonymous with cryptogenic fibrosing alveolitis is a rare, progressive illness of the respiratory system, characterized by the thickening and stiffening of lung tissue, associated with the formation of scar tissue. It is a type of chronic pulmonary fibrosis characterized by a progressive and irreversible decline in lung function.
Usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) is a form of lung disease characterized by progressive scarring of both lungs. The scarring involves the pulmonary interstitium. UIP is thus classified as a form of interstitial lung disease.
Pulmonary function testing (PFT) is a complete evaluation of the respiratory system including patient history, physical examinations, and tests of pulmonary function. The primary purpose of pulmonary function testing is to identify the severity of pulmonary impairment. Pulmonary function testing has diagnostic and therapeutic roles and helps clinicians answer some general questions about patients with lung disease. PFTs are normally performed by a pulmonary function technologist, respiratory therapist, respiratory physiologist, physiotherapist, pulmonologist, or general practitioner.
The European Sleep Apnea Database (ESADA) is a collaboration between European sleep centres as part of the European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) Action B 26. The main contractor of the project is the Sahlgrenska Academy at Gothenburg University, Institute of Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, and the co-ordinator is Jan Hedner, MD, PhD, Professor of Sleep Medicine.
Pulmonary rehabilitation, also known as respiratory rehabilitation, is an important part of the management and health maintenance of people with chronic respiratory disease who remain symptomatic or continue to have decreased function despite standard medical treatment. It is a broad therapeutic concept. It is defined by the American Thoracic Society and the European Respiratory Society as an evidence-based, multidisciplinary, and comprehensive intervention for patients with chronic respiratory diseases who are symptomatic and often have decreased daily life activities. In general, pulmonary rehabilitation refers to a series of services that are administered to patients of respiratory disease and their families, typically to attempt to improve the quality of life for the patient. Pulmonary rehabilitation may be carried out in a variety of settings, depending on the patient's needs, and may or may not include pharmacologic intervention.
The American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine is a biweekly peer-reviewed medical journal published by the American Thoracic Society. It covers the pathophysiology and treatment of diseases that affect the respiratory system, as well as topics of fundamental importance to the practice of pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine. It was established in March 1917 as the American Review of Tuberculosis. Since then there have been several title changes. In 1953 a subtitle was added, "A Journal of Pulmonary Diseases." In 1955 the title became the American Review of Tuberculosis and Pulmonary Diseases, and in 1959 the American Review of Respiratory Diseases. The journal obtained its current title in 1994.
Joe G. N. "Skip" Garcia is an American pulmonary scientist, physician and academician.
The Annals of the American Thoracic Society is an official medical journal of the American Thoracic Society (ATS). It publishes original clinical and epidemiological research in the fields of pulmonology, critical care medicine, and sleep medicine. Known colloquially as the "White Journal", the Annals of the American Thoracic Society is one of four journals published by the American Thoracic Society, along with the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology, and ATS Scholar.
Jason X.-J. Yuan is an American physician scientist whose research interests center on pulmonary vascular pathobiology and pulmonary hypertension. His current research is primarily focused on the pathogenic mechanisms of pulmonary vascular diseases and right heart failure.
William N. Rom is the Sol and Judith Bergstein Professor of Medicine and Environmental Medicine, Emeritus at New York University School of Medicine and former Director of the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at New York University and Chief of the Chest Service at Bellevue Hospital Center, 1989–2014. He is Research Scientist at the School of Global Public Health at New York University and Adjunct Professor at the NYU Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. He teaches Climate Change and Global Public Health and Environmental Health in a Global World.
Carolyn S. Calfee is a Professor of Medicine and Anaesthesia at the University of California, San Francisco. She works in intensive care at the UCSF Medical Center where she specialises in acute respiratory distress syndrome. During the COVID-19 pandemic Calfee studied why SARS-CoV-2 patients experienced such different symptoms.
Monica Kraft is an American scientist, medical professor and researcher. She is the System Chair of the Department of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Mount Sinai Health System. She is also the Murray M. Rosenberg Professor of Medicine.
Jadwiga “Wisia” A. Wedzicha is a British physician and Professor of Respiratory Medicine at the National Heart and Lung Institute. Her research has considered the causes and impact of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. She was elected as Fellow of the UK Academy of Medical Sciences in 2013 and awarded the Helmholtz International Fellow Award.
