Pathology and Clinical Findings of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome

Abstract

  The Berlin Definition was announced at a European Society of Intensive Care Medicine convention held in Berlin in 2011. It changes the previous definition of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). Broadly speaking, it classifies ARDS as mild, moderate, or severe based on P/F ratio. A survey of ARDS in the Tohoku region showed that the concept of acute hypoxic respiratory failure (AHRF) enabled early diagnosis and treatment and that patients with AHRF had a lower mortality rate than those with ALI/ARDS. Regardless of any changes to the classification, the importance of early diagnosis and treatment of ARDS caused by sepsis, which has a high mortality rate, remains unchanged. For this reason, it is vital to look chronologically at the humoral factors correlated with the pathophysiology of ARDS, and we believe the primary task should be promptly excluding causes of sepsis. To this end, we have independently developed presepsin, and are putting efforts into the early diagnosis and treatment of sepsis.