Acute respiratory distress syndrome: low-stretch ventilation improves survival

In a recent major study, patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome or acute lung injury were randomly assigned to have their respirators set to deliver tidal volumes of either 6 mL/kg or a more-traditional 12 mL/kg. Mortality in the low-tidal-volume group was 31.0%, compared with 39.8% in the traditional-tidal-volume group, a 22% difference (P = .007).