The adult respiratory distress syndrome.

The adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a common form of acute respiratory failure that has been increasingly reported as associated with a wide variety of medical conditions. Unlike other identifiable pathological events causing severe lung injury, it is now recognized that ARDS is not a single disease, but a complex interaction of pathophysiological events that result in diffuse injury to lung parenchyma. Only through a thorough understanding of ARDS pathophysiology, pathogenesis, and clinical course can medical intervention be instituted in a judicious and timely manner. This review article is intended to provide an overview of the suspected precipitating causes, discrete pathophysiologic changes, and monitorable clinical events associated with ARDS. With mortality from ARDS high, significant attention is being given to improving therapeutic intervention with such conventional measures as mechanical ventilation, positive end-expiratory pressure, and fluid management, along with corticosteroids and several new experimental pharmacologic approaches.