The primary outcome, number of ventilator-free days at day 28 of the study, was noninferior in the on-demand group versus the routine group, Dr. Paulus said.
The median number of ventilator-free days was 21 for the on-demand group and 20 for the routine group, said the paper.
The length of stay, mortality, and proportion of patients developing pulmonary complications did not differ between the two study arms, the investigators also reported in JAMA.
However, adverse events occurred in just 13.8% of the on-demand group, compared with 29.3% of the routine group (P less than .001), with the difference in adverse events mainly attributable to less tachyarrhythmia and agitation in the experimental group, according to the researchers.
Dr. Paulus and coauthors reported no conflicts of interest related to the study.
SOURCE: Paulus F et al. (van Meenen DMP et al.) JAMA. 2018 Feb. doi: 10.1001/jama.2018.0949.