Ventilation is artificial lung respiration. It serves as a replacement or support in the event of non-existent or insufficient spontaneous breathing. With its life-supporting function, it is a central component, particularly in emergency medicine, anesthesiology and intensive care medicine.

Ventilation is used when spontaneous breathing becomes insufficient or fails completely (apnea). This can occur, among other things, with cardiac arrest, neurological diseases, paralysis of the respiratory muscles, poisoning or under anesthesia. A number of lung diseases, as well as heart disease, sepsis and shock, can also affect breathing and require ventilation. Ventilation can continue from a few minutes to months, depending on the clinical situation.