Closing the "care in the air" capability gap for severe lung injury: the Landstuhl Acute Lung Rescue Team and extracorporeal lung support.

Background: The success of US Air Force Critical Care Air Transport Teams (CCATT) in transporting critically ill and injured patients enabled changes in military medical force deployment and casualty care practice. Even so, a subset of casualties remains who exceed even CCATT capabilities for movement. These patients led to the creation of the Landstuhl Acute Lung Rescue Team (ALeRT) to close the "care in the air" capability gap.

Critical care at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center.

Background: Landstuhl Regional Medical Center is the largest U.S. medical facility outside the United States, and it is the first permanently positioned hospital outside the combat zone providing care to the wartime sick and wounded.