Recent advances in experimental and clinical applications of chest electrical impedance tomography: a narrative review

The achieved technological maturity of electrical impedance tomography (EIT) and the clinical need of the information provided by this functional imaging method has intensified research activities on the medical use of chest EIT. The recent years have witnessed an accelerated research covering not only the experimental setting but also the clinical environment with the major focus on mechanically ventilated patients, both in the perioperative period or as part of the intensive care treatment. Patients of all age groups are being included in clinical investigations and studies using EIT. The major objectives for use of EIT are the monitoring of regional lung and cardiovascular function, identification of adverse events (pneumothorax, alveolar overdistension and collapse, pulmonary embolism) and guidance for individualised therapy (selection of ventilator setting, positioning and physical therapy). Our review describes the most recent achievements of experimental and clinical research on chest EIT. The provided information helps to identify the current hot topics in EIT research and to guide further improvements of EIT technology and applications that are still needed to enforce the establishment of chest EIT in routine patient care.