Frontiers in Medicine (Nov 2021)

Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation for COVID-19: Case Report of Nine Patients

  • Jing Hua,
  • Xin Zhang,
  • Na Wang,
  • Linyu Ran,
  • Shengyun Wang,
  • Chiungwei Huang,
  • Wei Gao,
  • Chenchen Qian,
  • Wei Guo,
  • Zhongmin Liu,
  • Qiang Li,
  • Feilong Wang

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmed.2021.697338
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 8

Abstract

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Covid-19, Coronavirus disease 2019; ARDS, Acute respiratory distress syndrome; ECMO, Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation; WHO, World Health Organization; ICUs, Intensive care units. Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a fatal comorbidity of critically ill patients with COVID-19, who often end up on respiratory support. However, the safety and effectiveness of Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) in the treatment of COVID-19 remains to be elucidated at present. Here, we report on nine patients who received ECMO due to severe SARS-CoV-2 infection in Wuhan, China. Our initial experiences suggest that carefully selecting patients, as well as management by a well-trained team, are critical to implementing ECMO in patients with COVID-19. More randomized controlled trials with larger sample sizes are needed to evaluate the usefulness of ECMO in patients with COVID-19.

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