Front Med (Lausanne). 2026 Jul 20;13:1879189. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2026.1879189. eCollection 2026.
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: To assess intensive care unit (ICU) nurses’ and respiratory therapists’ knowledge and practice regarding airway pressure release ventilation (APRV) use in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) patients and identify barriers to its implementation in China.
METHODS: A multicenter cross-sectional survey. Between June 22, 2024, and August 10, 2024, an online cross-sectional survey of ICU nurses and respiratory therapists from five cities in Sichuan Province, China, was conducted. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data.
RESULTS: Among 239 valid responses from ICU nurses and respiratory therapists in Sichuan Province, 55.2% (132/239) respondents reported no prior didactic APRV training, and 54.4% (130/239) had never used APRV for ARDS. While 97.9% (234/239) correctly identified ARDS as an indication, substantial variability was observed in the alignment of parameter settings with evidence-based recommendations. Key barriers to APRV use included lack of guidelines/standardized protocols (56.5%, 135/239), insufficient training (57.3%, 137/239), and lack of awareness (45.2%, 108/239).
CONCLUSION: Considerable variability in APRV knowledge and practice was observed among ICU nurses and respiratory therapists, coupled with a lack of standardized training and institutional protocols, highlighting a critical need for targeted educational interventions. The lack of guidelines or standardized protocols is the most common impediment to APRV use.
PMID:42548807 | PMC:PMC13429676 | DOI:10.3389/fmed.2026.1879189
