Dr. Meduri is the father of noninvasive ventilation, as he first investigated and reported its applications in all forms of acute respiratory failure. Dr. Meduri collaborated with Italian investigators (Drs. M. Antonelli and M. Confalonieri) in several landmark randomized trials providing efficacy and safety evidence. The worldwide implementation of noninvasive ventilation – based on the protocol developed by Dr. Meduri – is recognized as a significant contribution to reducing morbidity and mortality in critical care medicine. In patients with severe COVID-19, noninvasive ventilation has played an essential role in decreasing the need for endotracheal intubation.
Dr. Meduri was the first to describe the concepts of both the dysregulated systemic and pulmonary inflammation in ARDS and the cellular mechanisms responsible for regulation. His identification of the glucocorticoid receptor as the critical regulator for restoring health in critical illness has provided the rationale for prolonged glucocorticoid treatment in multiple critical illness states.
Over the past thirty years, Dr. Meduri has been the leading worldwide investigator and developer in the use of prolonged glucocorticoid treatment in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and severe pneumonia, as principal investigator in translational research and multiple landmark randomized trials. To date, prolonged glucocorticoid administration is the only treatment intervention that has reduced mortality in ARDS and in COVID-19. Dr. Meduri’s work has been referenced in 25,000 peer-reviewed publications.