In patients on mechanical ventilation for moderate-to-severe adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), early continuous neuromuscular blockade does not reduce mortality compared with a usual care approach with lighter sedation, clinical trial results show.

In the ROSE trial of more than 1000 patients with moderate-to-severe ARDS, US researchers evaluated the efficacy and safety of early neuromuscular blockade with cisatracurium infusion and concomitant heavy sedation for 48 hours.