Current pulmonology reports
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Mechanical ventilation (MV) is an important aspect in the intraoperative and early postoperative management of lung transplant (LTx)-recipients. There are no randomized-controlled trials of LTx-recipient MV strategies; however there are LTx center experiences and international survey studies reported. ⋯ Based on the available evidence, we recommend lung-protective MV with low-tidal-volumes (≤6 mL/kg predicted body weight [PBW]) and positive end-expiratory pressure for the LTx-recipient. In our opinion, the MV strategy should be based on donor characteristics (donor PBW as a parameter of actual allograft size), rather than based on recipient characteristics; however this donor-characteristics-based protective MV is based on indirect evidence and requires validation in prospective clinical studies.