Why Some Doctors Are Moving Away From Ventilator for Covid-19 Patients

Some hospitals have reported there are high death rates for coronavirus patients on ventilators, and some doctors worry that the machines might be harming certain patients.

Experts say that 40% to 50% of patients with severe respiratory distress die while on ventilators, and in New York City, officials say, ” 80% or more of coronavirus patients placed on the machines have died”.

Thus, some doctors are moving away from using breathing machines when they can.

It is said that the ventilators could damage the patient over time, as high-pressure oxygen is going into the tiny air sacs in a patient’s lungs.

Therefore, some doctors are trying to keep patients off ventilators as long as possible, and trying some other techniques like a lung specialist with the University of Miami Health System in Florida, use nitric oxide to keep patients off ventilators for as long as possible.

Meanwhile, doctors have limited the amount of pressure and the size of breaths delivered by the machine so that it will not cause harm to the patient.