Continuous positive airway pressure in the prophylaxis of the adult respiratory distress syndrome.

After an operation upon the abdomen, certain patients have a high risk of developing acute respiratory failure or the adult respiratory distress syndrome. These patients at high risk have been mechanically ventilated during the postoperative period in an attempt to prevent the onset of respiratory insufficiency. As a method of prophylaxis, continuous positive airway pressure has the advantages of increasing the functional residual capacity with minimal effects on the cardiac output, low potential for barotrauma and simplicity of equipment. Alternate patients at risk following an operation on the upper part of the abdomen were placed on 8 centimeters of water continuous positive airway pressure for the first 24 hours postoperatively. Fifty-six controls and 56 patients receiving continuous positive airway pressure were studied. In ten controls, adult respiratory distress syndrome developed, and three died in respiratory failure. Only one of the group receiving continuous positive airway pressure met standard criteria for the diagnosis of adult respiratory distress syndrome. In addition, in 25 patients serving as controls, respiratory complications other than adult respiratory distress syndrome developed compared with the development in only 11 receiving continuous positive airway pressure9