Ventilators, also known as respirators or breathing machines, are machines that help people breathe when they are unable to get enough air on their own. A serious illness or damage to the lungs can prevent patients from getting oxygen to the parts of their bodies. If this happens, patient ventilation is necessary to keep a person alive.
Features
A tube is placed in the patient's windpipe through the mouth, nose or a surgical incision in the neck. The ventilator is hooked up to the tube and blows air into the patient's lungs. The ventilator is connected to a monitor that keeps track of the patient's heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen level and respiratory rate. Doctors, nurses and respiratory therapists keep track of the information and use it to adjust the air pressure, if necessary.
Function
Patient ventilation gets oxygen into the lungs and other parts of the body and removes carbon dioxide from the lungs. Ventilators breathe for patients with brain damage, weak muscles or injuries that prevent them from breathing. They are also used to assist patients who can breathe on their own but have a hard time because of lung damage.
Potential Problems
The goal for using ventilation is to control the patient's breathing pattern until she can breathe on her own, prevent her from developing a lung infection or an infection where the tube is inserted and keep the patient from pulling the tube out. Sometimes when the ventilator is trying to push air in, the patient is trying to breathe out. A sedative might be needed for the patient to let the ventilator breathe for them.
Warning
Patient ventilation is a life support measure, but it does have risks. Infection caused by germs that get into the lungs through the tube can cause pneumonia. A weak part of the lung that gets too much air can leak, and the lung can collapse. High levels of oxygen can cause lung damage. It may be difficult for a patient to breathe without the ventilator after he becomes used to letting it breathe for him.
Considerations
During patient ventilation, the patient can't talk because the tube is between the vocal chords. Patients can feel closed in, uncomfortable and anxious. Ventilators don't fix what's broken; they only help patients breathe until other treatments work. Though most patients on ventilators are in the intensive care unit of the hospital, patients who need them for a long time might use them in a regular hospital room, at home or while in rehabilitation.
Tags: into lungs, lung damage, patients breathe