AboutHillarie Speziale Expertise I can answer general questions about ICU care, the frequently used medications, procedures, and life supports. I can also explain many of the diagnoses and supportive measures used for patients with that particular illness. I am familiar with the infectious, cardiac, pulmonary, renal, and gastric problems that can land you in the ICU. I can not tell you exactly how long the patient stay will be, diagnosis your symptoms, or tell you with any certainty that the care you (or your loved one) received was wrong. I can also answer career questions regarding RRT and RN fields. Please note: neurology is not a field I have a great deal of familiarity with..
Experience I have 17 yrs experience as a Respiratory Therapist, and 9 yrs as a critical care nurse. I am familiar with infectious, cardiac, respiratory, renal and gastric diagnoses that can land you in the ICU.
Education/Credentials Assoc. Degree in Respiratory Therapy, Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Master of science in psychiatric nurse practitioning.
Expert: Hillarie Speziale Date: 1/18/2008 Subject: How long can a person stay on a ventilator after surgery
Question My Dad had open heart surgery to replace a valve and an artery 4 days ago. They tried to take him off and it caused a problem he is unable to breath on his own. He is now at 50%. They are treating him for pulmonary embolism even though they are not sure. He is unable to be moved for certain testing. My question is how long can he stay on this ventilator. Also they are keeping him under sedation so he is not up. He removed one of the tubes from his mouth while awake. They check on him now and then taking him off the sedation asking him questions and then back on sedation. All other vial signs are good. Oh he has a low grade fever waiting for the blood results tomorrow. Just looking for any information to understand better.
Answer Hi Lisa, There is no real limit to how long a person can remain on a ventilator. Usually, if he is still on the ventilator after about 2 wks, the physicians would consider a tracheostomy. They place a small hole through the base of the neck in to the trachea. This decreases the trauma to the airway, returns the mouth to its normal state, greatly increases the ease of weaning, and opens up the possibility of eating and drinking despite being on the ventilator.
It is common practice to maintain sedation while the patient is on the ventilator because of the risk of hurting themselves by removing necessary tubes or lines. It is sort of a instinctual desire to remove anything from your mouth or nose upon waking. The process of waking him up periodically to check his neurological status is good practice. It decreases the risk of oversedation as well as ensuring that nothing is occurring neurologically to him.
A low grade fever may be related to his difficulty weaning. He may turn out to have some sort of infection and once this is treated, the weaning may progress quickly. A pulmonary embolism may also cause a low grade fever.
I hope he's doing better. Take care, Hillarie
