Acute respiratory distress syndrome in the cardiothoracic patient: State of the art and use of veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) encountered during the course of cardiothoracic (CT) surgery is a rare (1.1% incidence) unfortunate event increasing both morbidity and mortality.1^,2 Cardiogenic shock occurring during CT surgery can contribute to lung dysfunction, which may compound or overlap pure respiratory pathophysiology. Supportive care strategies are numerous and varied but, with the exception of low tidal-volume ventilation, lack clear evidence demonstrating a survival benefit in randomized controlled trials.