How long can ventilator stay in

The reason for needing the ventilator. How serious is being put on a ventilator? In some cases, such as surgery, ventilators are used for a few hours to a few days. Sometimes the ventilator is used for days to weeks—for example, for serious pneumonia or lung injury.

How long the ventilator is needed. For those over the age of 70 or those with health problems, the chance of long-term complications is higher. Your personal values and beliefs. It is important to think about what matters most to you. What gives meaning to your life? Is there any condition that would not be acceptable to you? What would you be willing to try? No matter what you decide about your care, your providers will respect your decisions.

Share this article. Other articles of interest. It is used for life support, but does not treat disease or medical conditions. Many conditions, such as pneumonia, COPD, brain injuries, and strokes require the use of a ventilator. If you have a loved one with a disease or condition that impairs their lung function, a ventilator will be employed. The use of a ventilator is also common when someone is under anesthesia during general surgery. A patient may not even know they were connected to a ventilator after the completion of the surgery or medical procedure.

Patients on ventilators run a higher risk of developing pneumonia because of bacteria that enters through the breathing tube. It can also make it difficult for them to cough and clear airways of irritants that can cause infections. The breathing tube will prevent the patient from eating normally, so a different tube that provides nutrients, may be inserted into their vein. Patients who are on long-term ventilation may require a feeding tube directly inserted into the nose or mouth, or through a hole made in the stomach.

If you cannot breathe on your own because infection or injury has caused your lungs to fail, you may need a ventilator. This gives the patient time to heal and recover from serious illness. This second group of patients often have severe acute respiratory distress syndrome ARDS , which occurs when fluid builds up in the lungs and prevents them from filling with enough air.

Breathing becomes difficult and oxygen cannot get to vital organs. Bice says. This is called post-intensive care syndrome, and it can include physical weakness and cognitive dysfunction, sometimes called brain fog, marked by a loss of intellectual functions such as thinking, memory and reasoning.