Tiny study hopes to Fine-Tune ventilator settings for easier breathing

This study looks at how changing the pressure inside the lungs (called PEEP) affects how hard patients have to work to breathe while on a ventilator. Twelve adults in the ICU who are already breathing with some help from a machine will have their PEEP set to four different levels in random order. Researchers will measure breathing effort using a small balloon in the esophagus and other non-invasive methods. The goal is to understand which PEEP level reduces strain on the breathing muscles, which could help prevent lung injury.