Ventilators: Do they save or kill Covid patients?

[mystery-ak]

April 14, 2020
Ventilators: Do they save or kill Covid patients?
By Bill Choslovsky

Doctors are now wondering if ventilators actually accelerate death or kill Covid patients.   And with death rates of 80% or more for those put on ventilators, they surely should wonder.  Anything that results in death 80% of the time should be questioned.

Remember, our harsh lockdown measures to “flatten the curve” are motivated in large part to help ensure there are sufficient ventilators for when people get sick.  Amazing if those ventilators now prove to be of little therapeutic value. 

more
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2020/04/ventilators_do_they_save_or_kill_covid_patients.html

[Fishrrman]

Folks, I'm dumb, help me out here.

All a ventilator can do is force air/oxygen into the lungs, and then help evacuate it, right...?

But for many who become seriously infected, the problem isn't getting air into and out of the lungs... rather... it seems more of a problem in the lungs (or something in the blood) that is preventing the oxygen that's already there from getting into the blood. Perhaps the virus is impairing the normal functioning of the aveoli (sp)?

This would be a "chemical" problem, not a physical one.

All the ventilator can do is "address the physics".
Those treating the disease don't seem to be having very good results by putting patients on ventilators, particularly under much input pressure.

I recall reading that many patients may be helped by putting them on high doses of oxygen (while respirating normally)...