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Key Points
- A ventilator is a machine that helps people
breathe. Ventilators:
- Get oxygen into the lungs
- Remove carbon dioxide from the body
- Help people breathe easier
- Breathe for people who have lost all ability
to breathe
- Ventilators dont treat diseases or
conditions. Theyre used only for life support.
- A ventilator often is used for short periods,
such as during surgery when youre under anesthesia (that is, if
youre given medicines that temporarily put you to sleep and cause a loss
of feeling). The medicines used to induce anesthesia can disrupt normal
breathing. A ventilator helps make sure that you continue breathing during
surgery.
- A ventilator also may be used during treatment
for a serious lung disease or other condition that affects normal
breathing.
- Ventilators blow airor air with increased
amounts of oxygeninto the airways and then the lungs. This is done using
a breathing tube. Usually, the breathing tube is put into your windpipe through
your nose or mouth. Sometimes the tube is put directly into your windpipe
through a hole in the front of your neck.
- Ventilators normally dont cause pain, but
they greatly restrict your activity and limit your movement. People who need
ventilators long term may get portable machines. These machines let them move
around.
- One of the most serious and common risks of being
on a ventilator is
pneumonia.
Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is linked to the breathing tube
that’s put in your airway when you’re on a ventilator. The tube may
make it easy for bacteria to get into the lungs. It also makes it hard for you
to cough. Coughing is important for helping to get rid of bacteria.
- Other risks of being on a ventilator include
pneumothorax,
lung damage, oxygen toxicity, blood clots, and serious skin infections.
- “Weaning” is the process of taking
you off a ventilator so that you can start to breathe on your own. People
usually are weaned after they’ve recovered enough from the problem that
caused them to need the ventilator. Most people are able to breathe on their
own the first time weaning is tried. If repeated weaning attempts over a long
time don’t work, you may need to use the ventilator long term.
- Most people need ventilators only for a short
time. If you need to be on a ventilator for a long time, you may be able to
have one at home.
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