The American journal of the medical sciences
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Multicenter Study
Mechanical ventilation management by pulmonologists and surgeons in patients with adult respiratory distress syndrome.
Treatment of patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is complex, and management by a specialist with expertise in pulmonary mechanics may improve outcomes. We compared mechanical ventilation management of patients with ARDS by pulmonologists and surgeons. ⋯ We found that patients who survived with ARDS spent fewer days on mechanical ventilation, and there was a trend for spending fewer days in the ICU when mechanical ventilation is managed by a pulmonologist compared with a surgeon. There was a lower mortality rate in the pulmonologist group, although this did not reach statistical significance. A small sample size and the retrospective design limit our findings. Further study using a multicenter design to determine if a disease specific specialist improves efficiency of care is needed because if our findings are confirmed, it would translate into significant cost savings.