Electrical Impedance Tomography - Watch the lungs breathe!

Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT) is a relatively new noninvasive tool in the management of patients on mechanical ventilators. It is a simple, user-friendly and radiation-free investigation to study the regional ventilation and distribution of ventilation particularly in patients with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). It empowers the clinician to take necessary steps for the management of collapsed, non-aerated regions of the lungs, to prevent regional overdistension of lungs which results in Ventilator Induced Lung Injury (VILI) and for early detection of pneumothorax. This is a short review focusing the basic principles, clinical applications and current evidence in the effectiveness of this modality in the routine respiratory care.