Redefining Respiratory Support: Insights from ATS 2025 on the Future of Mechanical Ventilation

MECHANICAL ventilation remains one of the most powerful, yet potentially harmful tools in critical care. Despite decades of refinement in ventilator strategies, complications such as ventilator-induced lung injury, oxygen toxicity, and fluid overload continue to impact outcomes in those who are critically ill. At the American Thoracic Society (ATS) International Conference 2025, a series of novel studies pushed the boundaries of our understanding and delivery of respiratory support. Here, three key advances that offer a glimpse into the future of mechanical ventilation are highlighted: quantifying risk with mechanical power and fluid overload, applying machine learning to personalize oxygen targets, and engineering a groundbreaking intravenous oxygenation strategy.