Acute lung injury and the acute respiratory distress syndrome continue to be significant causes of morbidity and mortality in the intensive care setting. The failure of patients to resolve the alveolar edema associated with these conditions is a major contributing factor to mortality; hence there is continued interest to understand the mechanisms of alveolar edema fluid clearance.

The accompanying review by Vadász et al. details our current understanding of the signaling mechanisms and cellular processes that facilitate clearance of edema fluid from the alveolar compartment, and how these signaling processes may be exploited in the development of novel therapeutic strategies. To complement that report this review focuses on how intact organ and animal models and clinical studies have facilitated our understanding of alveolar edema fluid clearance in acute lung injury and acute respiratory distress syndrome. Furthermore, it considers how what we have learned from these animal and organ models and clinical studies has suggested novel therapeutic avenues to pursue.