The Effect of High Frequency Oscillation on Biological Markers of Lung Injury

The Effect of High Frequency Oscillation on Biological Markers of Lung Injury

Mechanical ventilation, although life-saving, damages the lungs through what is known as ventilator-induced lung injury. High frequency oscillation ventilation has been proposed as a ventilation method that may be less injurious to the lungs than conventional mechanical ventilation and may lead to better patient outcomes. To evaluate this hypothesis, the OSCILLATE trial is comparing outcomes in patients with the acute respiratory distress syndrome randomized to high frequency oscillation ventilation vs conventional lung protective ventilation. The present study is a substudy of the OSCILLATE trial looking at biomarkers of ventilator-induced lung injury in blood samples drawn from patients enrolled in OSCILLATE. The objective is to look for biochemical evidence of decreased ventilator-induced lung injury in patients treated with high frequency oscillation ventilation relative to conventional ventilation.

Inclusion Criteria:

• enrollment in OSCILLATE (NCT01506401)

Exclusion Criteria:

• inability to provide blood samples