[Invasive mechanical ventilation: Update for the pediatrician]

Abstract

In this review, we collect the fundamental concepts of the use of invasive mechanical ventilation (MV) in children, particularly in acute respiratory failure. MV is a common practice in the ICU and must be understood as a therapeutic intervention to replace the work of breathing while restores the balance between ventilatory demand and the patient's ability to sustain it. It is essential for the clinician to recognize that the goal of mechanical ventilatory support is not to normalize the patient's blood gases but providing a reasonable gas exchange; the benefts are obtained if the safety thresholds are not exceeded. Thus, this strategy has become the only tool available to limit the development of ventilator-induced lung injury (VILI).