Resuscitation Review Blog
Ventilator physiology

Dynamic Hyperinflation and Auto-PEEP: The Hidden Cause of Hypotension After Intubation

Not all hypotension after intubation comes from sedation.

Sometimes the ventilator is the problem.

Dynamic hyperinflation occurs when a patient does not have enough time to fully exhale before the next breath begins. Air becomes trapped in the lungs, end-expiratory lung volume rises, and intrinsic PEEP develops.

This is auto-PEEP.

Auto-PEEP is especially important in obstructive lung disease.

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