ECMO – Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation

ECMO – extracorporeal membrane oxygenation ECMO – Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation – has been in use for the past four decades to support persons who are unlikely to survive with mechanical ventilation. ECMO is used in both adult and pediatric practice, though in the initial years, use of ECMO was restricted to pediatric intensive care. The enthusiasm for use of ECMO in adults have been triggered by the beneficial effect noted during the last H1N1 influenza pandemic [1]. In contrast from cardiopulmonary bypass which is used for a short period during cardiac surgery, ECMO is used to support for a long period, usually three to ten days, mostly in medical management outside the operation theatre, in the intensive care unit. While cardiopulmonary bypass allows cardiac surgery in the arrested heart, ECMO allows the heart and lung function to recover during an illness which has caused cardiopulmonary compromise. Types of ECMO ECMO circuits are of two types: Veno-arterial (VA-ECMO) and veno-venous (VV-ECMO) [2]. In veno-arterial ECMO, deoxygenated blood is drained from the femoral vein and oxygenated blood is delivered through a cannula introduced into the femoral artery. Veno-arterial ECMO supports both respiration and circulation. Veno-venous ECMO involves drainage of deoxygenated blood from the femoral vein and delivery of oxygenated blood into the jugular vein. Veno-venous ECMO provides only respiratory support. Central venoarterial ECMO by draining...
Source: Cardiophile MD - Category: Cardiology Authors: Tags: Cardiac Surgery Source Type: blogs