Do initial tidal volumes impact acute respiratory distress syndrome development in patients intubated in the emergency department?

In the current issue of the Journal of Critical Care, a retrospective study reports that patients intubated and ventilated in the emergency department (ED) are at high risk for acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) [1]. [...]comorbid conditions that might have affected VT selection in the ED were not accounted for; for example, physicians might have chosen lower VT for patients with asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to avoid auto-positive end-expiratory pressure or higher VT for head trauma patients they wanted to hyperventilate.