Visualisation of time-variant respiratory system elastance in ARDS models

Abstract

Model-based mechanical ventilation (MV) can be used to characterise patient-specific condition and response to MV. This paper presents a novel method to visualise respiratory mechanics during MV of patients suffering from acute respiratory distress syndrome. The single compartment lung model is extended to monitor time-varying respiratory system elastance within each breathing cycle. Monitoring continuous in-breath mechanics allows changes to be observed continuously, providing more insight into lung physiology. Thus, this new monitoring method may potentially aid clinicians to guide MV in a heterogeneous population.