Trans-tracheal open ventilation in acute respiratory failure secondary to severe COPD exacerbation Cesare Gregoretti *, M.D, Vincenzo Squadrone §, M.D, Claudio Fogliati §, M.D, Carlo Olivieri #, M.D, and Paolo Navalesi ^, M.D. * Dipartimento di emergenza e accettazione, Ospedale CTO, Torino, Italy; § Terapia Intensiva, Azienda Ospedaliera S. Luigi Gonzaga, Orbassano, Italy; # S.C.D.U. Anestesia 1-Rianimazione, Azienda Ospedaliera “Maggiore della Carità”, Dipartimento di Anestesiologia e Terapia Intensiva, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy; and ^ Pneumologia Riabilitativa e Terapia Intensiva Respiratoria, Fondazione S. Maugeri IRCCS, Pavia, Italy. The work should be attributed to the Intensive Care Unit, Azienda Ospedaliera S. Luigi Gonzaga, Orbassano, Italy. Correspondence: Cesare Gregoretti, MD. Dipartimento di emergenza e accettazione, Ospedale CTO, Via Zuretti 29, 10100 Torino, Italy. Phone +39 011 6937361.Fax: +39 011 6937351.E-mail c.gregoretti@tiscali.it Running head: Open ventilation in acute respiratory failure Descriptor number: 6- Mechanical ventilation: controlled trials Word count: 2361 This article has an online data supplement, which is accessible from this issue's table of contents online at www.atsjournals.org. AJRCCM Articles in Press. Published on January 19, 2006 as doi:10.1164/rccm.200503-450OC Copyright (C) 2006 by the American Thoracic Society.