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Up to now there are no systematics of respiratory therapy, although those procedures of "conservative" respiratory therapy are well known since the last century. As ventilation will take over a part or the whole work of breathing of a patient this kind of respiratory therapy must be separated from the conservative therapy procedure, which is the focal point of respiratory therapy. This has been demonstrated by an analysis of respiratory therapy made on two different ICU's. From this analysis a system has been developed encompassing the whole range of respiratory therapy.

The accuracy of oxygen flowmeters is a prerequisite for a predictable oxygen therapy. As a flowmeter seems to be of unlimited service life, they are often not serviced regularly. This can result in errors in the actual oxygen flow of as much as 50% of the preset value.

In 384 hands the patency of the arterial arch was investigated by means of both the Allen test and the Doppler palmar arch test as developed by the authors. While the Allen test is purely subjective and gives a high proportion of false results especially in shocked patients, the Doppler palmar arch test is based on two objective criteria: 1. Demonstration of reversed flow in the distal section of the radial artery on proximal compression. 2. Demonstration of pulsatile flow in the radial thumb artery even on compression of the radial artery. The Doppler palmar arch test eliminates all negative aspects of the Allen test and is therefore definitely more reliable than the latter. It is easy to perform for investigators having little experience with Doppler sonography. The time consumed is not greater than with the Allen test.