Heart & lung : the journal of critical care
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ARDS yearly afflicts more than 150,000 people, many of whom are young and otherwise healthy and yet the mortality rate remains in excess of 60% to 70%. This high mortality has not yielded to the significant gains made in intensive care patient management and rapid advances in technology. Acute lung injury research in the past 15 to 20 years has greatly enhanced our understanding of the pathophysiologic mechanisms underlying this complicated disorder. ⋯ Fortunately, basic research has recently yielded promising results with pharmacologic interventions designed to limit lung injury or prompt lung repair. Clinical trials underway and proposed will determine which, if any, of these approaches is effective. Until success is achieved, supportive intensive care with diligent attention to infection control, fluid therapy, nutrition, and ventilator management will remain the focal point of therapy for ARDS.
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In summary, the present examples illustrate how pacemaker malfunction can be simulated by the sources of artifact produced or detected by the monitoring equipment. This form of pseudopacemaker malfunction remains a common cause of mistaken diagnosis of pacemaker malfunction. A thorough understanding of the examples outlined above should help distinguish true pacemaker malfunction from pseudopacemaker malfunction produced by artifact.