Forti et al. Journal of Medical Case Reports 2010, 4:339 http://www.jmedicalcasereports.com/content/4/1/339 improve the right ventricle function. More studies are required in order to confirm this data. Consent Written informed consent was obtained from the patient for publication of this case report and any accompany- ing images. A copy of the written consent is available for review by the Editor-in-Chief of this journal. Abbreviations CV: conventional ventilation; EEC: extracorporeal circulation; EF: Ejection fraction; FiO2: fractional inspiratory oxygen; HFPV: high frequency percussive ventilation; I:E: inspiratory-expiratory rate; LVSWI: left ventricular stroke work index; MArP: mean airway pressure; PaO2: arterial partial pressure of oxygen; PAWP: pulmonary artery wedge pressure; PEEP: positive end expiratory pressure; PIP: peak inspiratory pressure; PVRI: pulmonary vascular resistance index; RVSWI: right ventricular stroke work index. Authors’ contributions AF conceived the work, carried out the study, collected and analyzed the data and wrote the paper. PZ, VS and BP analyzed the data and helped to write the paper. CS analysed the data. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Competing interests The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Received: 5 February 2010 Accepted: 25 October 2010 Published: 25 October 2010 References 1. Ghotkar SV, Aerra V, Mediratta N: Cardiac surgery in patients with previous pneumonectomy. J Cardiothorac Surg 2008, 3:11. 2. Asimakopoulos G, Smith PL, Ratnautunga CP, Taylor KM: Lung injury acute respiratory distress syndrome after cardiopulmonary bypass. Ann Thorac Surg 1999, 68(3):1107-1115. 3. Warner DO: Preventing postoperative pulmonary complications: the role of the anesthesiologist. Anesthesiology 2000, 92(5):1467-1472. 4. Shenkman Z, Shir Y, Weiss YG, Bleiberg B, Gross D: The effects of cardiac surgery on early and late pulmonary functions. Acta Anaesthesiol Scand 1997, 41(9):1193-1199. 5. Micak R, Cortiella J, Desai M, Herndon D: Lung compliance, airway resistance, and work of breathing in children after inhalation injury. J Burn Care Rehabil 1997, 18(6):531-534. 6. Krishnan JA, Brower RG: High-frequency ventilation for acute lung injury. Chest 2000, 118(3):795-807. 7. Reper P, Van Bos R, Van Loey K, Van Laeke P, Vanderkelen A: High frequency percussive ventilation in burn patients: hemodynamics and gas exchange. Burns 2003, 29(6):603-608. 8. Lucangelo U, Antonaglia V, Zin WA, Confalonieri M, Borelli M, Columban M, Cassio S, Batticci I, Ferluga M, Cortale M, Berlot G: High-frequency percussive ventilation improves perioperatively clinical evolution in pulmonary resection. Crit Care Med 2009, 37(5):1810-1811. 9. Velmahos GC, Chan LS, Tatevossian R, Cornwell EE, Dougherty WR, Escudero J, Demetriades D: High-frequency percussive ventilation improves oxygenation in patients with ARDS. Chest 1999, 116:440-446. doi:10.1186/1752-1947-4-339 Cite this article as: Forti et al.: Haemodynamics and oxygenation improvement induced by high frequency percussive ventilation in a patient with hypoxia following cardiac surgery: a case report. Journal of Medical Case Reports 2010 4:339. Page 5 of 5 Submit your next manuscript to BioMed Central and take full advantage of: • Convenient online submission • Thorough peer review • No space constraints or color ﬁgure charges • Immediate publication on acceptance • Inclusion in PubMed, CAS, Scopus and Google Scholar • Research which is freely available for redistribution Submit your manuscript at www.biomedcentral.com/submit