Ventilator-associated tracheobronchitis and pneumonia: thinking outside the box.

Lower respiratory tract infections in intubated patients include ventilator-associated tracheobronchitis (VAT) and ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). These infections are increasingly caused by multidrug-resistant bacteria, which colonize the patient's oropharynx and enter the lower respiratory tract around the endotracheal tube cuff or through the lumen. Progression of colonization to VAT and, in some patients, to VAP is related to the quantity, types, and virulence of invading bacteria versus containment by host defenses.

Ventilator-associated tracheobronchitis: the impact of targeted antibiotic therapy on patient outcomes.

Nosocomial lower respiratory tract infections are a common cause of morbidity and mortality in ICU patients receiving mechanical ventilation. Many studies have investigated the management and prevention of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), but few have focused on the role of ventilator-associated tracheobronchitis (VAT). The pathogenesis of lower respiratory tract infections often begins with tracheal colonization that may progress to VAT, and in selected patients to VAP.