Neonatal Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome, what is it and how should we treat it?
ARDS is a fairly common problem in the adult and the paediatric ICU; following trauma, or systemic sepsis, or other extrapulmonary insults, usually inflammatory in nature, or as a complication of direct pulmonary…
ARDS is a fairly common problem in the adult and the paediatric ICU; following trauma, or systemic sepsis, or other extrapulmonary insults, usually inflammatory in nature, or as a complication of direct pulmonary insults, such as pneumonia or aspiration of gastric contents. It is characterised by acute respiratory distress, diffuse pulmonary infiltrates on the x-ray, without signs of cardiac compromise, an oxygenation defect, and a major decrease in lung compliance. Various definitions have been proposed, none of which are entirely satisfactory, but many cases in the PICU are fairly clear.
