Pressure volume loop with excessive ventilation

This pressure volume loop shows a "bird beak" pattern in the portion of the curve in the red oval, in which the breath is increasing pressure without an appreciable increase in volume. The set ventilator pressure (during pressure controlled ventilation) or volume (during volume controlled ventilation) should be decreased to prevent barotrauma, and the effect of these maneuvers can be monitored by the change in the shape of the curve.