Abstract

Introduction: Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a frequent condition associated with high mortality, acute alveolar damage, loss of lung compliance and hypoxemia. The prone position has been used to improve oxygenation in patients with moderate to severe hypoxemia with PaO2/FiO2lt;150, with this maneuver the lung compliance increases, associated with more homogeneous lung expansion and better gas exchange. Aims: Primary: To evaluate the effectiveness of the prone position in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome. Secondary: Understand the respiratory physiology involved in the use of prone position in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome. Methods: This work is a narrative review of literature in the Google academic, Scientific Electronic Library Online (Scielo), Medline and Cochrane databases, 22 articles were selected between 2001 and 2020. The keywords used were #x201C;prone position#x201D;, #x201C;respiratory distress syndrome#x201D; and #x201C;acute lung injury#x201D;.