One-Year Outcomes in Survivors of the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome

BACKGROUND: As more patients survive the acute respiratory distress syndrome, an understanding of the long-term outcomes of this condition is needed. METHODS: We evaluated 109 survivors of the acute respiratory distress syndrome 3, 6, and 12 months after discharge from the intensive care unit. At each visit, patients were interviewed and underwent a physical examination, pulmonary-function testing, a six-minute-walk test, and a quality-of-life …