Case series: Effect of anesthesia machine ventilator and ICU ventilator on intraoperative oxygenation and ventilation

Mechanical ventilation is required in patients under general anesthesia. Intraoperatively, mechanical ventilation is usually performed using an anesthesia machine because of its combined capacity to deliver anesthetic agents, but anesthesiologists frequently encounter situations in which an anesthesia machine ventilator alone does not achieve optimal oxygenation or ventilation and requires switching to the intensive care unit (ICU) ventilator for better performance, or sometimes that decision is made after a discussion with the surgery and intensive care teams. Previous studies have compared respiratory parameters in different ventilators in artificial model lung simulation^1-5 but, their clinical implications have not been thoroughly investigated. We present 13 cases that required switching from anesthesia machine ventilator to ICU ventilator for clinical reasons and discuss the effects on patients' parameters and outcomes, as well as the rationale behind these effects using our artificial model lung and literature review.