Book excerpt: This issue of Clinics in Chest Medicine focuses on Advances in Mechanical Ventilation. Articles include: Mechanical Ventilation Design Features; Assessing Respiratory System Mechanical Function; Ventilator Induced Lung Injury; Managing Acute Lung Injury; Patient-Ventilator Interactions; Extracorporeal Gas Exchange; Preventing Ventilator Associated Infections; Ventilator Discontinuation Process; Ventilator Management of the Non-injured Lung; Non-invasive Ventilation; and more!