Ventilator induced lung injury (VILI) is caused or aggravated by invasive mechanical ventilation. With the continuous exploration of the pathogenesis of VILI, increasing studies have been carried out to explain the strategies of lung protective ventilation that can alleviate VILI injury. Currently, how to determine the parameters of individualized lung protective ventilation is an urgent clinical problem to be solved. Recently proposed driving pressure‑guided lung protective ventilation strategy can significantly improve patient prognosis, and is expected to become a new type of lung protection strategy in perioperative application. This review is to analyze the concept and meaning of driving pressure, summarize its application in perioperative period, so as to provide new ideas for lung protective ventilation strategy.