Fig. 2
From: ARDS associated acute brain injury: from the lung to the brain
Role of inflammation in the development of ARDS-associated secondary brain injury. Hypoxemia and mechanical ventilation elicit a number of systemic responses including release of inflammatory mediators in the systemic circulation followed by potential BBB dysfunction, endothelial cell activation, altered lymphocyte trafficking, and impairment of cerebral and systemic blood flow. These afferent signals and circulating inflammatory mediators might induce neuroinflammation, microglial activation, neuronal death, and cerebral oedema, contributing potentially to the development of ARDS-associated encephalopathy