Miracle Medical Machine ECMO Makes Heroic Rescues, but Leaves Patients in Limbo

I am delighted to be a small part of this USA Today story on ECMO. It includes some compelling patient stories.  ECMO is not designed to be a destination, but a bridge to somewhere – recovery, transplantation or an implanted heart device. But when patients are too sick to reach those goals, ECMO can become a "bridge to nowhere," leaving the patient in limbo, possibly even awake and alert, but with no chance of survival outside the intensive care unit. Medical teams and families can be fiercely divided over when to pull the plug.
Source: blog.bioethics.net - Category: Medical Ethics Authors: Tags: Health Care syndicated Source Type: blogs