Experimental Data on the Pulmonary Effects of Remote Ischemic Preconditioning

Purpose of Review Remote ischemic preconditioning (RIP) has been demonstrated to protect against ischemia-reperfusion-injury in different target organs. The mechanisms that eventually lead to these protective effects have been investigated in depth but are not yet fully elucidated. Although the effects of RIP seem to be promising in animal experiments and smaller clinical studies, they failed to achieve clinical significance in multicenter trials. These trials have mainly focused on the heart, the brain, and the kidneys, but only little is known concerning the effects of RIP on the lungs. This review will provide an overview on what is already published on RIP and its effects on the respiratory system. Recent Findings Different modes of RIP action have been assessed, like systemic, humoral, and neural responses. As mechanical ventilation, and especially one-lung ventilation, is harmful to the lungs, it is of great interest to find ways of protecting the respiratory system in clinical practice. Therefore, experimental as well as clinical trials have been performed to seek for protective devices. Summary RIP is easy to perform and cheap to apply and is therefore a promising and interesting tool that might find its way into clinical practice in order to attenuate the detrimental effects of mechanical ventilation to the lungs. The present review will highlight and discuss recent experimental data especially on pulmonary effects of RIP.