Up to 92.7% of COVID-19 patients in NYC have been KILLED by ventilators
Mark Crispin Miller
Prone Position in Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
Analysis by Dr. Joseph MercolaFact Checked- May 07, 2020
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a lung condition that causes low blood oxygen and fluid buildup in the lungs; it’s a common complication of severe COVID-19 cases- Lying in the prone (face down) position, in which your chest is down and your back is up, could be a simple way to improve outcomes in ARDS
- Early application of prone positioning lowered mortality rates in people with severe ARDS
- Oxygenation is significantly better among patients in the prone position compared to the supine (face up) position, and prone positioning may also prevent ventilator-induced lung injury
- Increasing research suggests that prone positioning should be used “systematically” in the early management of severe ARDS, and not reserved as a “rescue maneuver or a last-ditch effort”
- You can also try prone positioning at home if you’re experiencing cough or mild shortness of breath
Lying in the prone (face down) position, in which your chest is down and your back is up, could be a simple way to improve outcomes in cases of severe respiratory distress. This topic has received renewed attention during the COVID-19 pandemic, as invasive mechanical ventilation is conventionally delivered with the patient in the supine (face up) position, which refers to lying on your back.
“Mechanical ventilation is the main supportive treatment for critically ill patients” infected with novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19), according to a February 2020 study published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine.1 However, reports suggest that many COVID-19 patients put on ventilators don’t make it.
In a JAMA study that included 5,700 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in the New York City area between March 1, 2020, and April 4, 2020, mortality rates for those who received mechanical ventilation ranged from 76.4% to 97.2%, depending on age.2 There are many reasons why those on ventilators have a high risk of mortality, including being more severely ill to begin with.
However, given the poor outcomes, some physicians are now trying to keep patients off ventilators as much as possible by using alternative measures, including having patients lie on their stomachs (prone) to allow for better lung aeration.3
It’s also possible that prone ventilation, which is ventilation delivered with the patient lying in the prone position, may help patients who aren’t responding to conventional ventilation in the supine position,4 as well as reduce mortality in those with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).5