Health related quality of life, physical function, and cognitive performance in mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients: A long term follow-up study.

BACKGROUND: Survivors of severe COVID-19 related respiratory failure may experience durable functional impairments. We aimed at investigating health-related quality of life (HR-QoL), physical functioning, fatigue, and cognitive outcomes in COVID-19 patients who received invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV). METHODS: Case-series, prospective, observational cohort study at 18 months from hospital discharge. Patients referring to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Humanitas Research Hospital (Milan, Italy) were recruited if they needed IMV due to COVID-19 related respiratory failure. After 18 months, these patients underwent the 6-min walking test (6MWT), the Italian version of the 5-level EQ-5D questionnaire (EQ-5D-5L), the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy - Fatigue questionnaire (FACIT-F), the Trail Making Test-B (TMT-B) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment-BLIND test (MoCA-BLIND). RESULTS: 105 patients were studied. The population's age was 60 ± 10 years on average, with a median Frailty Scale of 2 (Hodgson et al., 2017; Carenzo et al., 2021a [2,3]). EQ-VAS was 80 [70-90] out of 100, walked distance was 406 [331-465] meters, corresponding to about 74 ± 19,1% of the predicted value. FACIT-F score was 43 [36-49] out of 52, and MoCa-BLIND score was 19 (DeSalvo et al., 2006; von Elm et al., 2008; Herdman et al., 2011; Scalone et al., 2015 [16-20]) out of 22. The median TMT-B time was 90 [62-120] seconds. We found a possible age and gender specific effect on HR-QoL and fatigue. CONCLUSIONS: After 18 months from ICU discharge, survivors of severe COVID-19 respiratory failure experience a moderate reduction in HR-QoL, and a severe reduction in physical functioning. Fatigue prevalence is higher in younger patients and in females. Finally, cognitive impairment was present at a low frequency.

Effect of decreasing PEEP on hyperinflation and collapse in COVID-19: A computed tomography study.

BACKGROUND: High positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP>10 cmH2O) is commonly used in mechanically ventilated hypoxemic patients with COVID-19. However, some epidemiological and physiological studies indirectly suggest that using a lower PEEP may primarily and beneficially decrease lung hyperinflation in this population. Herein we directly quantified the effect of decreasing PEEP from 15 to 10 cmH2O on lung hyperinflation and collapse in mechanically ventilated patients with COVID-19. METHODS: Twenty mechanically ventilated patients with COVID-19 underwent a lung computed tomography (CT) at PEEP of 15 and 10 cmH2O. The effect of decreasing PEEP on lung hyperinflation and collapse was directly quantified as the change in the over-aerated (density below -900 HU) and non-aerated (density above -100 HU) lung volumes. The net response to decreasing PEEP was computed as the sum of the change in those two compartments and expressed as the change in the "pathologic" lung volume. If the pathologic lung volume decreased (i.e., hyperinflation decreased more than collapse increased) when PEEP was decreased, the net response was considered positive; otherwise, it was considered negative. RESULTS: On average, the ratio of arterial tension to inspiratory fraction of oxygen (PaO2:FiO2) in the overall study population was 137 (119-162) mmHg. In 11 (55%) patients, the net response to decreasing PEEP was positive. Their over-aerated lung volume decreased by 159 (98-186) mL, while the non-aerated lung volume increased by only 58 (31-91) mL. In nine (45%) patients, the net response was negative. Their over-aerated lung volume decreased by 46 (18-72) mL, but their non-aerated lung volume increased by 107 (44-121) mL. CONCLUSION: In 20 patients with COVID-19 the net response to decreasing PEEP, as assessed with lung CT, was variable. In approximately half of them it was positive (and possibly beneficial), with a decrease in hyperinflation larger than the increase in collapse.

Successful Versus Failed Transition From Controlled Ventilation to Pressure Support Ventilation in COVID-19 Patients: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

OBJECTIVES: In patients with COVID-19 respiratory failure, controlled mechanical ventilation (CMV) is often necessary during the acute phases of the disease. Weaning from CMV to pressure support ventilation (PSV) is a key objective when the patient's respiratory functions improve. Limited evidence exists regarding the factors predicting a successful transition to PSV and its impact on patient outcomes. DESIGN: Retrospective observational cohort study. SETTING: Twenty-four Italian ICUs from February 2020 to May 2020. PATIENTS: Mechanically ventilated ICU patients with COVID-19-induced respiratory failure. INTERVENTION: The transition period from CMV to PSV was evaluated. We defined it as "failure of assisted breathing" if the patient returned to CMV within the first 72 hours. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Of 1260 ICU patients screened, 514 were included. Three hundred fifty-seven patients successfully made the transition to PSV, while 157 failed. Pao2/Fio2 ratio before the transition emerged as an independent predictor of a successful shift (odds ratio 1.00; 95% CI, 0.99-1.00; p = 0.003). Patients in the success group displayed a better trend in Pao2/Fio2, Paco2, plateau and peak pressure, and pH level. Subjects in the failure group exhibited higher ICU mortality (hazard ratio 2.08; 95% CI, 1.42-3.06; p < 0.001), an extended ICU length of stay (successful vs. failure 21 ± 14 vs. 27 ± 17 d; p < 0.001) and a longer duration of mechanical ventilation (19 ± 18 vs. 24 ± 17 d, p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: Our study emphasizes that the Pao2/Fio2 ratio was the sole independent factor associated with a failed transition from CMV to PSV. The unsuccessful transition was associated with worse outcomes.

Estimation of normal lung weight index in healthy female domestic pigs.

INTRODUCTION: Lung weight is an important study endpoint to assess lung edema in porcine experiments on acute respiratory distress syndrome and ventilatory induced lung injury. Evidence on the relationship between lung-body weight relationship is lacking in the literature. The aim of this work is to provide a reference equation between normal lung and body weight in female domestic piglets. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 177 healthy female domestic piglets from previous studies were included in the analysis. Lung weight was assessed either via a CT-scan before any experimental injury or with a scale after autopsy. The animals were randomly divided in a training (n = 141) and a validation population (n = 36). The relation between body weight and lung weight index (lung weight/body weight, g/kg) was described by an exponential function on the training population. The equation was tested on the validation population. A Bland-Altman analysis was performed to compare the lung weight index in the validation population and its theoretical value calculated with the reference equation. RESULTS: A good fit was found between the validation population and the exponential equation extracted from the training population (RMSE = 0.060). The equation to determine lung weight index from body weight was: [Formula: see text] At the Bland and Altman analyses, the mean bias between the real and the expected lung weight index was - 0.26 g/kg (95% CI - 0.96-0.43), upper LOA 3.80 g/kg [95% CI 2.59-5.01], lower LOA - 4.33 g/kg [95% CI = - 5.54-(- 3.12)]. CONCLUSIONS: This exponential function might be a valuable tool to assess lung edema in experiments involving 16-50 kg female domestic piglets. The error that can be made due to the 95% confidence intervals of the formula is smaller than the one made considering the lung to body weight as a linear relationship.

Comprehensive study of mechanical power in controlled mechanical ventilation: Prevalence of elevated mechanical power and component analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of elevated mechanical power (MP) values (>17J/min) used in routine clinical practice. DESIGN: Observational, descriptive, cross-sectional, analytical, multicenter, international study conducted on November 21, 2019, from 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM. NCT03936231. SETTING: One hundred thirty-three Critical Care Units. PATIENTS: Patients receiving invasive mechanical ventilation for any cause. INTERVENTIONS: None. MAIN VARIABLES OF INTEREST: Mechanical power. RESULTS: A population of 372 patients was analyzed. PM was significantly higher in patients under pressure-controlled ventilation (PC) compared to volume-controlled ventilation (VC) (19.20±8.44J/min vs. 16.01±6.88J/min; p<0.001), but the percentage of patients with PM>17J/min was not different (41% vs. 35%, respectively; p=0.382). The best models according to AICcw expressing PM for patients in VC are described as follows: Surrogate Strain (Driving Pressure) + PEEP+Surrogate Strain Rate (PEEP/Flow Ratio) + Respiratory Rate. For patients in PC, it is defined as: Surrogate Strain (Expiratory Tidal Volume/PEEP) + PEEP+Surrogate Strain Rate (Surrogate Strain/Ti) + Respiratory Rate+Expiratory Tidal Volume+Ti. CONCLUSIONS: A substantial proportion of mechanically ventilated patients may be at risk of experiencing elevated levels of mechanical power. Despite observed differences in mechanical power values between VC and PC ventilation, they did not result in a significant disparity in the prevalence of high mechanical power values.

A Multilayered Imaging and Microfluidics Approach for Evaluating the Effect of Fibrinolysis in Staphylococcus aureus Biofilm Formation.

The recognition of microbe and extracellular matrix (ECM) is a recurring theme in the humoral innate immune system. Fluid-phase molecules of innate immunity share regulatory roles in ECM. On the other hand, ECM elements have immunological functions. Innate immunity is evolutionary and functionally connected to hemostasis. Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is a major cause of hospital-associated bloodstream infections and the most common cause of several life-threatening conditions such as endocarditis and sepsis through its ability to manipulate hemostasis. Biofilm-related infection and sepsis represent a medical need due to the lack of treatments and the high resistance to antibiotics. We designed a method combining imaging and microfluidics to dissect the role of elements of the ECM and hemostasis in triggering S. aureus biofilm by highlighting an essential role of fibrinogen (FG) in adhesion and formation. Furthermore, we ascertained an important role of the fluid-phase activation of fibrinolysis in inhibiting biofilm of S. aureus and facilitating an antibody-mediated response aimed at pathogen killing. The results define FG as an essential element of hemostasis in the S. aureus biofilm formation and a role of fibrinolysis in its inhibition, while promoting an antibody-mediated response. Understanding host molecular mechanisms influencing biofilm formation and degradation is instrumental for the development of new combined therapeutic approaches to prevent the risk of S. aureus biofilm-associated diseases.

Pathophysiology of hypoxemia in mechanically-ventilated patients with COVID-19: A computed tomography study.

The pathogenesis of hypoxemia during acute respiratory distress syndrome caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection (C-ARDS) is debated. Some observations led to hypothesize ventilation to perfusion mismatch, rather than anatomical shunt, as the main determinant of hypoxemia. In this observational study 24 C-ARDS patients were studied 1 (0-1) days after intubation. Patients underwent a CT scan analysis to estimate anatomical shunt and a clinical test to measure venous admixture at two fractions of inspired oxygen (FiO2), to eliminate oxygen-responsive mechanisms of hypoxemia (ventilation to perfusion mismatch and diffusion limitation). In 10 out of 24 patients venous admixture was higher than anatomical shunt both at clinical (≈50 %) and 100 % FiO2. These patients were ventilated with a higher PEEP and had lower amount of anatomical shunt compared with patients with venous admixture equal/lower than anatomical shunt. In a subset of C-ARDS patients early after endotracheal intubation, hypoxemia might be explained by an abnormally high perfusion of a relatively low anatomical shunt.

Calcium-Citrate Anticoagulation during Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy in Patients with Metformin Intoxication: A Case Series, Mathematical Estimation of Citrate Accumulation, and Literature Review.

INTRODUCTION: Metformin intoxication causes lactic acidosis by inhibiting Krebs' cycle and oxidative phosphorylation. Continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) is recommended for metformin removal in critically ill patients. According to current guidelines, regional citrate anticoagulation (RCA) is the first-line strategy. However, since metformin also inhibits citrate metabolism, a risk of citrate accumulation could be hypothesized. In the present study, we monitored the potential citrate accumulation in metformin-associated lactic acidosis (MALA) patients treated with CRRT and RCA using the physical-chemical approach to acid-base interpretation. METHODS: We collected a case series of 3 patients with MALA. Patients were treated with continuous venovenous hemofiltration (CVVH), and RCA was performed with diluted citrate solution. Citrate accumulation was monitored through two methods: the ratio between total and ionized plasma calcium concentrations (T/I calcium ratio) above 2.5 and the strong ion gap (SIG) to identify an increased concentration of unmeasured anions. Lastly, a mathematical model was developed to estimate the expected citrate accumulation during CVVH and RCA. RESULTS: All 3 patients showed a resolution of MALA after the treatment with CVVH. The T/I calcium ratio was consistently below 2.5, and SIG decreased, reaching values lower than 6 mEq/L after 48 h of CVVH treatment. According to the mathematical model, the estimated SIG without citrate metabolism should have been around 21 mEq/L due to citrate accumulation. CONCLUSIONS: In our clinical management, no signs of citrate accumulation were recorded in MALA patients during treatment with CVVH and RCA. Our data support the safe use of diluted citrate to perform RCA during metformin intoxication.

COVID-19: dealing with ventilator shortage.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: To describe different strategies adopted during coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic to cope with the shortage of mechanical ventilators. RECENT FINDINGS: Short-term interventions aimed to increase ventilator supply and decrease demand. They included: redistributing and centralizing patients, repurposing operating rooms into intensive care units (ICUs) and boosting ventilator production and using stocks and back-ups; support by the critical care outreach team to optimize treatment of patients in the ward and permit early discharge from the ICU, ethical allocation of mechanical ventilators to patients who could benefit more from intensive treatment and short term ICU trials for selected patients with uncertain prognosis, respectively. Long-term strategies included education and training of non-ICU physicians and nurses to the care of critically-ill patients and measures to decrease viral spread among the population and the progression from mild to severe disease. SUMMARY: The experience and evidence gained during the current pandemic is of paramount importance for physicians and law-makers to plan in advance an appropriate response to any future similar crisis. Intensive care unit, hospital, national and international policies can all be improved to build systems capable of treating an unexpectedly large number of patients, while keeping a high standard of safety.

The role of hypoxia and inflammation in the regulation of iron metabolism and erythropoiesis in COVID-19: The IRONCOVID study.

Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) can be considered as a human pathological model of inflammation combined with hypoxia. In this setting, both erythropoiesis and iron metabolism appear to be profoundly affected by inflammatory and hypoxic stimuli, which act in the opposite direction on hepcidin regulation. The impact of low blood oxygen levels on erythropoiesis and iron metabolism in the context of human hypoxic disease (e.g., pneumonia) has not been fully elucidated. This multicentric observational study was aimed at investigating the prevalence of anemia, the alterations of iron homeostasis, and the relationship between inflammation, hypoxia, and erythropoietic parameters in a cohort of 481 COVID-19 patients admitted both to medical wards and intensive care units (ICU). Data were collected on admission and after 7 days of hospitalization. On admission, nearly half of the patients were anemic, displaying mild-to-moderate anemia. We found that hepcidin levels were increased during the whole period of observation. The patients with a higher burden of disease (i.e., those who needed intensive care treatment or had a more severe degree of hypoxia) showed lower hepcidin levels, despite having a more marked inflammatory pattern. Erythropoietin (EPO) levels were also lower in the ICU group on admission. After 7 days, EPO levels rose in the ICU group while they remained stable in the non-ICU group, reflecting that the initial hypoxic stimulus was stronger in the first group. These findings strengthen the hypothesis that, at least in the early phases, hypoxia-driven stimuli prevail over inflammation in the regulation of hepcidin and, finally, of erythropoiesis.

Association of COVID-19 Vaccinations With Intensive Care Unit Admissions and Outcome of Critically Ill Patients With COVID-19 Pneumonia in Lombardy, Italy.

Importance: Data on the association of COVID-19 vaccination with intensive care unit (ICU) admission and outcomes of patients with SARS-CoV-2-related pneumonia are scarce. Objective: To evaluate whether COVID-19 vaccination is associated with preventing ICU admission for COVID-19 pneumonia and to compare baseline characteristics and outcomes of vaccinated and unvaccinated patients admitted to an ICU. Design, Setting, and Participants: This retrospective cohort study on regional data sets reports: (1) daily number of administered vaccines and (2) data of all consecutive patients admitted to an ICU in Lombardy, Italy, from August 1 to December 15, 2021 (Delta variant predominant). Vaccinated patients received either mRNA vaccines (BNT162b2 or mRNA-1273) or adenoviral vector vaccines (ChAdOx1-S or Ad26.COV2). Incident rate ratios (IRRs) were computed from August 1, 2021, to January 31, 2022; ICU and baseline characteristics and outcomes of vaccinated and unvaccinated patients admitted to an ICU were analyzed from August 1 to December 15, 2021. Exposures: COVID-19 vaccination status (no vaccination, mRNA vaccine, adenoviral vector vaccine). Main Outcomes and Measures: The incidence IRR of ICU admission was evaluated, comparing vaccinated people with unvaccinated, adjusted for age and sex. The baseline characteristics at ICU admission of vaccinated and unvaccinated patients were investigated. The association between vaccination status at ICU admission and mortality at ICU and hospital discharge were also studied, adjusting for possible confounders. Results: Among the 10 107 674 inhabitants of Lombardy, Italy, at the time of this study, the median [IQR] age was 48 [28-64] years and 5 154 914 (51.0%) were female. Of the 7 863 417 individuals who were vaccinated (median [IQR] age: 53 [33-68] years; 4 010 343 [51.4%] female), 6 251 417 (79.5%) received an mRNA vaccine, 550 439 (7.0%) received an adenoviral vector vaccine, and 1 061 561 (13.5%) received a mix of vaccines and 4 497 875 (57.2%) were boosted. Compared with unvaccinated people, IRR of individuals who received an mRNA vaccine within 120 days from the last dose was 0.03 (95% CI, 0.03-0.04; P < .001), whereas IRR of individuals who received an adenoviral vector vaccine after 120 days was 0.21 (95% CI, 0.19-0.24; P < .001). There were 553 patients admitted to an ICU for COVID-19 pneumonia during the study period: 139 patients (25.1%) were vaccinated and 414 (74.9%) were unvaccinated. Compared with unvaccinated patients, vaccinated patients were older (median [IQR]: 72 [66-76] vs 60 [51-69] years; P < .001), primarily male individuals (110 patients [79.1%] vs 252 patients [60.9%]; P < .001), with more comorbidities (median [IQR]: 2 [1-3] vs 0 [0-1] comorbidities; P < .001) and had higher ratio of arterial partial pressure of oxygen (Pao2) and fraction of inspiratory oxygen (FiO2) at ICU admission (median [IQR]: 138 [100-180] vs 120 [90-158] mm Hg; P = .007). Factors associated with ICU and hospital mortality were higher age, premorbid heart disease, lower Pao2/FiO2 at ICU admission, and female sex (this factor only for ICU mortality). ICU and hospital mortality were similar between vaccinated and unvaccinated patients. Conclusions and Relevance: In this cohort study, mRNA and adenoviral vector vaccines were associated with significantly lower risk of ICU admission for COVID-19 pneumonia. ICU and hospital mortality were not associated with vaccinated status. These findings suggest a substantial reduction of the risk of developing COVID-19-related severe acute respiratory failure requiring ICU admission among vaccinated people.

Detailed stratified GWAS analysis for severe COVID-19 in four European populations.

Given the highly variable clinical phenotype of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a deeper analysis of the host genetic contribution to severe COVID-19 is important to improve our understanding of underlying disease mechanisms. Here, we describe an extended genome-wide association meta-analysis of a well-characterized cohort of 3255 COVID-19 patients with respiratory failure and 12 488 population controls from Italy, Spain, Norway and Germany/Austria, including stratified analyses based on age, sex and disease severity, as well as targeted analyses of chromosome Y haplotypes, the human leukocyte antigen region and the SARS-CoV-2 peptidome. By inversion imputation, we traced a reported association at 17q21.31 to a ~0.9-Mb inversion polymorphism that creates two highly differentiated haplotypes and characterized the potential effects of the inversion in detail. Our data, together with the 5th release of summary statistics from the COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative including non-Caucasian individuals, also identified a new locus at 19q13.33, including NAPSA, a gene which is expressed primarily in alveolar cells responsible for gas exchange in the lung.

Outcome prediction during an ICU surge using a purely data-driven approach: A supervised machine learning case-study in critically ill patients from COVID-19 Lombardy outbreak.

PURPOSE: COVID-19 disease frequently affects the lungs leading to bilateral viral pneumonia, progressing in some cases to severe respiratory failure requiring ICU admission and mechanical ventilation. Risk stratification at ICU admission is fundamental for resource allocation and decision making. We assessed performances of three machine learning approaches to predict mortality in COVID-19 patients admitted to ICU using early operative data from the Lombardy ICU Network. METHODS: This is a secondary analysis of prospectively collected data from Lombardy ICU network. A logistic regression, balanced logistic regression and random forest were built to predict survival on two datasets: dataset A included patient demographics, medications before admission and comorbidities, and dataset B included respiratory data the first day in ICU. RESULTS: Models were trained on 1484 patients on four outcomes (7/14/21/28 days) and reached the greatest predictive performance at 28 days (F1-score: 0.75 and AUC: 0.80). Age, number of comorbidities and male gender were strongly associated with mortality. On dataset B, mode of ventilatory assistance at ICU admission and fraction of inspired oxygen were associated with an increase in prediction performances. CONCLUSIONS: Machine learning techniques might be useful in emergency phases to reach good predictive performances maintaining interpretability to gain knowledge on complex situations and enhance patient management and resources.

Lung response to prone positioning in mechanically-ventilated patients with COVID-19.

BACKGROUND: Prone positioning improves survival in moderate-to-severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) unrelated to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). This benefit is probably mediated by a decrease in alveolar collapse and hyperinflation and a more homogeneous distribution of lung aeration, with fewer harms from mechanical ventilation. In this preliminary physiological study we aimed to verify whether prone positioning causes analogue changes in lung aeration in COVID-19. A positive result would support prone positioning even in this other population. METHODS: Fifteen mechanically-ventilated patients with COVID-19 underwent a lung computed tomography in the supine and prone position with a constant positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) within three days of endotracheal intubation. Using quantitative analysis, we measured the volume of the non-aerated, poorly-aerated, well-aerated, and over-aerated compartments and the gas-to-tissue ratio of the ten vertical levels of the lung. In addition, we expressed the heterogeneity of lung aeration with the standardized median absolute deviation of the ten vertical gas-to-tissue ratios, with lower values indicating less heterogeneity. RESULTS: By the time of the study, PEEP was 12 (10-14) cmH2O and the PaO2:FiO2 107 (84-173) mmHg in the supine position. With prone positioning, the volume of the non-aerated compartment decreased by 82 (26-147) ml, of the poorly-aerated compartment increased by 82 (53-174) ml, of the normally-aerated compartment did not significantly change, and of the over-aerated compartment decreased by 28 (11-186) ml. In eight (53%) patients, the volume of the over-aerated compartment decreased more than the volume of the non-aerated compartment. The gas-to-tissue ratio of the ten vertical levels of the lung decreased by 0.34 (0.25-0.49) ml/g per level in the supine position and by 0.03 (- 0.11 to 0.14) ml/g in the prone position (p < 0.001). The standardized median absolute deviation of the gas-to-tissue ratios of those ten levels decreased in all patients, from 0.55 (0.50-0.71) to 0.20 (0.14-0.27) (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: In fifteen patients with COVID-19, prone positioning decreased alveolar collapse, hyperinflation, and homogenized lung aeration. A similar response has been observed in other ARDS, where prone positioning improves outcome. Therefore, our data provide a pathophysiological rationale to support prone positioning even in COVID-19.

Lung Response to a Higher Positive End-Expiratory Pressure in Mechanically Ventilated Patients With COVID-19.

BACKGROUND: International guidelines suggest using a higher (> 10 cm H2O) positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) in patients with moderate-to-severe ARDS due to COVID-19. However, even if oxygenation generally improves with a higher PEEP, compliance, and Paco2 frequently do not, as if recruitment was small. RESEARCH QUESTION: Is the potential for lung recruitment small in patients with early ARDS due to COVID-19? STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Forty patients with ARDS due to COVID-19 were studied in the supine position within 3 days of endotracheal intubation. They all underwent a PEEP trial, in which oxygenation, compliance, and Paco2 were measured with 5, 10, and 15 cm H2O of PEEP, and all other ventilatory settings unchanged. Twenty underwent a whole-lung static CT scan at 5 and 45 cm H2O, and the other 20 at 5 and 15 cm H2O of airway pressure. Recruitment and hyperinflation were defined as a decrease in the volume of the non-aerated (density above -100 HU) and an increase in the volume of the over-aerated (density below -900 HU) lung compartments, respectively. RESULTS: From 5 to 15 cm H2O, oxygenation improved in 36 (90%) patients but compliance only in 11 (28%) and Paco2 only in 14 (35%). From 5 to 45 cm H2O, recruitment was 351 (161-462) mL and hyperinflation 465 (220-681) mL. From 5 to 15 cm H2O, recruitment was 168 (110-202) mL and hyperinflation 121 (63-270) mL. Hyperinflation variably developed in all patients and exceeded recruitment in more than half of them. INTERPRETATION: Patients with early ARDS due to COVID-19, ventilated in the supine position, present with a large potential for lung recruitment. Even so, their compliance and Paco2 do not generally improve with a higher PEEP, possibly because of hyperinflation.