After most surgeries, your doctor will disconnect the ventilator once the anesthesia wears off and you begin breathing on your own. They will remove the tube from your throat. This usually happens before you completely wake up from surgery. When you wake up, you may not even know that you were connected to a ventilator. The only sign may be a slight sore throat for a short time. The sore throat is caused by the tube that connects the ventilator to your airway.
\nMost people who have anesthesia during surgery only need a ventilator for a short time. However, you could stay on a ventilator for a few hours to several days after certain types of surgeries.
\n\"Weaning\" is the process of slowly decreasing ventilator support to the point when you can start breathing on your own. Most people are able to breathe on their own the first time weaning is tried. Once you can successfully breathe on your own, you will be disconnected from the ventilator. Usually, people can be weaned when their doctor determines that they have recovered enough from the problem that caused them to need the ventilator.
\nYou may cough while the breathing tube is removed. Your voice may be hoarse for a short time afterwards. If you can't breathe on your own during first attempt, weaning will be tried at a later time. If repeated weaning attempts over a long time don\u2019t work, you may need to use the ventilator long term.
\nIf you continue to be critically ill and a ventilator does not help improve your condition, you may need extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). ECMO passes your blood through a machine that adds oxygen, removes carbon dioxide, and pumps the blood back into your body. ECMO can be used for several days or weeks to give your lungs a chance to recover.
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