Driving Pressure
Plateau pressure minus PEEP — a marker of lung-protective ventilation beyond tidal volume alone.
Formula
Driving pressure = Plateau pressure − PEEP
Result
Enter all values to see the result.
Limitations
- Requires a valid plateau pressure measured during an end-inspiratory pause with no active patient effort — spontaneous breathing effort invalidates the measurement.
- The mortality association comes from retrospective analyses of trial data, not a randomized trial of a driving-pressure-targeted strategy itself.
- Doesn't separate lung from chest wall contribution — see transpulmonary pressure for that distinction.
References
- Amato MB, et al. Driving Pressure and Survival in the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome. NEJM 2015.
Clinical Context & Relevant Topics (3)
Disease ReferenceAcute, diffuse inflammatory lung injury causing hypoxemia and bilateral infiltrates not fully explained by cardiac failure or fluid overload.
Complete clinical topic overview. For the full 10-level interactive course, visit Master MV. Covers core ventilator modes, respiratory mechanics (Cstat, Raw, driving pressure), waveform dyssynchrony analysis, VILI prevention, and liberation protocols.
Pathophysiology of acute-on-chronic hypercapnia, controlled oxygen targets (88–92%), evidence-based NIV, and auto-PEEP matching mechanics.
Relevant Clinical Pathways (12)
Decision ProtocolsFrom post-intubation verification and lung-protective settings to mechanics optimization.
From readiness screening and spontaneous breathing trials to extubation and post-extubation support.