Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists' Adherence to an Intraoperative Lung Protective Ventilation Protocol.

The clinical application of intraoperative mechanical ventilation is highly variable and often determined by providers' attitudes and preferences, rather than evidence. Ventilation strategies using high tidal volumes (V) with little to no positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) are associated with lung injury, increasing the risk of postoperative pulmonary complications. Literature demonstrates that applying lung protective ventilation (LPV) strategies intraoperatively, including low V, individualized PEEP, and alveolar recruitment maneuvers, can reduce the risk of postoperative pulmonary complications.

Lung-protective ventilation for the surgical patient: international expert panel-based consensus recommendations.

Postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs) occur frequently and are associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. Evidence suggests that reduction of PPCs can be accomplished by using lung-protective ventilation strategies intraoperatively, but a consensus on perioperative management has not been established. We sought to determine recommendations for lung protection for the surgical patient at an international consensus development conference.