ABSTRACT
The acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and acute
lung injury (ALI) are syndromes that commonly affect
intensive care patients. Initially termed the adult respiratory
distress syndrome, because it was thought to only occur in
adults, it has now been renamed the acute respiratory dis-
tress syndrome, as it does also occur in children. Despite
recent important advances in management and our under-
standing of its pathophysiology, ARDS still carries a high
mortality. This chapter outlines the definition, epidemi-
ology, pathophysiology and clinical presentation of this
disease complex as well as discussing current treatment
modalities, both conventional and alternative.
