Critically ill patients admitted to an intensive care unit for a life-threatening condition (both medical and surgical) can contract a ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP).

This is an infection acquired by virtue of being on mechanical ventilation in a host who has lost the normal integrity of their respiratory tract defense mechanisms, and often times also has a deficient innate immunity secondary to their critical illness.

Several risk factors have been reported to be associated with developing a VAP.

This would include duration of mechanical ventilation, sepsis, trauma, neurological disease, chronic pulmonary disease, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), prior use of antibiotics, and red cell transfusions.

This nosocomial infection increases morbidity, mortality, as well as the cost of health care (due to longer ICU and hospital length of stay).

Mortality rates in patients with VAP range from 20% to 50% and may reach more than 70% when the infection is caused by multiresistant and invasive pathogens.

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