Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome is a catastrophic acute respiratory illness: ARDS is a
serious acute respiratory illness that can affect even previously healthy individuals. This condition
has varied etiologies, notably pneumonia, sepsis, aspiration and trauma. While common etiologies
exist in the countries world wide, there is a regional difference influenced by the socio economic
conditions, disease prevalence and access to care. . Examples include cases of ARDS seen in
Malaria, Dengue or Tuberculosis in India are not prevalent in other countries. Recently the
definition of ARDS has been revised. An important new component of the new Berlin definition of
ARDS is the identification of a predisposing condition, and the development of new or worsening
respiratory symptoms within seven days of that insult. This timeframe gives a clearly specified
window following the onset of a predisposing condition during which interventions to prevent
development of ARDS may be administered. 

Critical Care is a new specialty worldwide. It is growing and is now an established field in India. One
of the objectives of this proposal is to bring together likeminded committed intensivists and
institutions to focus on ARDS. We begin with gathering a snapshot of a well-defined entity with a
significant mortality to further characterize it in India. Although critical illness seems same for the
suffering patient, its etiology and effect on the family seem to be more regionally influenced.