Lung dialysis: Are we there yet?

摘要

A variety of clinical pulmonary conditions frequently require admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) with assisted mechanical ventilation (AMV). Among them, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the most debilitating chronic disease worldwide, affecting 64-210 million people, and being responsible for the death of 4.5 million people/year [1-3]. In United States alone, it is the third leading cause of mortality, and compared to the other chronic disease which are on decline, the COPD related mortality is actually on the rise [3]. Another common ICU maladie is the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), which is considered as one of the most important causes of acute respiratory failure.