Abstract: Along with the development of critical care medicine and the advances in respiratory support，the short-term mortality of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) has significantly decreased, and many patients have survived. Then the long-term outcomes of survivors of ARDS is getting more and more attention. ARDS survivors can have complete recovery of pulmonary function, but they might continue to present sequelae including physical impairment (muscle weakness and limited activities), cognitive impairment and psychologic problem (anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder) over five years, called as post intensive care syndrome, resulting in a decline in quality of life and increasing the burden of family and medical resource consumption. For ARDS patients, some factors have a significant impact on the longterm outcomes of survivors, including pre-ARDS health status (such as comorbidity, obesity, functional independence,mental health status), lifestyle (such as smoking) and the relevant variables during their stay in ICU (such as delirium, corticosteroids, opioids, acquired muscle weakness, hypoxemia). Identifying the modifiable risk factors for long-term outcomes of ARDS patients, and taking timely intervention measures have important significance for decline of post-ARDS dysfunction. It is unclear whether interventions in ICU or post-ICU can effectively improve long-term outcomes in ARDS survivors, and further investigation and validation are required.

Key words: respiratory distress syndrome, adult, quality of life, respiratory function tests, exercise ability, cognition disorders, mental health