Lung Perfusion and Ventilation During Cardiopulmonary Bypass Reduces Early Structural Damage to Pulmonary Parenchyma.

Background: It is unclear whether maintaining pulmonary perfusion and ventilation during cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) reduces pulmonary inflammatory tissue injury compared with standard CPB where the lungs are not ventilated and are minimally perfused. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that maintenance of lung perfusion and ventilation during CPB decreases regional lung inflammation, which may result in less pulmonary structural damage.

Methods: Twenty-seven pigs were randomly allocated into a control group only submitted to sternotomy (n = 8), a standard CPB group (n = 9), or a lung perfusion group (n = 10), in which lung perfusion and ventilation were maintained during CPB.