Background
critically ill, ARDS, ARF, hypoxemia, orotracheal intubation, coronavirus disease 2019
VIRUS, CORONAVIRUS DISEASE 2019, CRITICALLY ILL, ARF, COVID-19 PNEUMONIA, ARDS, ACUTE RESPIRATORY DISTRESS SYNDROME
Patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, can develop severe hypoxemia and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) [Nowadays, whether to intubate early or late remains controversial. Several expert consensus recommend early intubation in patients with a severe presentation of COVID-19 pneumonia because a large proportion of these patients could potentially develop ARF requiring emergency orotracheal intubation, which is associated to a higher risk of viral transmission to healthcare workers [A recent meta-analysis including more than 8,000 critically ill patients with COVID-19 suggested that the timing of intubation may have no impact on mortality [