How does being on a ventilator cause someone on it to have organ damage? I thought ventilators are just supposed to help you breathe?
In: Biology
Ventilators are designed to force air into the lungs to allow you to breathe. As such, a foreign object is inserted into your throat which your body may reject.
Your body is also designed with several steps to prevent foreign objects from reaching your internal organs. Having a hose pushed into your lungs bypasses several of those defensive measures, potentially opening up a clear route for infectious diseases.
A third possibility is that the hose is inserted improperly or too forcefully resulting in trauma to the tissues. If you’re admitted to a hospital and are in need of a ventilator, it’s likely that you’re body has been weakened by a disease. As such, a normal insertion may prove to be too forceful for you.
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