• Parthak Prodhan, Richard T Fiser, Sophia Cenac, Adnan T Bhutta, Eudice Fontenot, Michelle Moss, Stephen Schexnayder, Paul Seib, Carl Chipman, Lauren Weygandt, Michiaki Imamura, Robert D B Jaquiss, and Umesh Dyamenahalli.
• Arkansas Children's Hospital, Little Rock, AR, USA. prodhanparthak@uams.edu
• Pediatr Crit Care Me. 2010 Mar 1;11(2):227-33.

ObjectiveTo evaluate indications, process, interventions, and effectiveness of patients undergoing intrahospital transport. Critically ill patients supported with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation are transported within the hospital to the radiology suite, cardiac catheterization suite, operating room, and from one intensive care unit to another. No studies to date have systematically evaluated intrahospital transport for patients on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation.DesignRetrospective cohort analysis.SettingCardiac intensive care unit in a tertiary care children's hospital.PatientsAll patients on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation who required intrahospital transport between January 1996 and March 2007 were included and analyzed.Measurements And Main ResultsA total of 57 intrahospital transports for cardiac catheterization and head computed tomography scans were analyzed. In 14 (70%) of 20 of patients with cardiac catheterization, a management change occurred as a result of the diagnostic cardiac catheterization. In ten (59%) of 17 patients, bedside echocardiography was of limited value in defining the critical problem. In the interventional group, the majority of transports were for atrial septostomy. In the head computed tomography group, significant pathology was identified, which led to management change. No major complications occurred during these intrahospital transports.ConclusionsAlthough transporting patients on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation is labor intensive and requires extensive logistic support, it can be carried out safely in experienced hands and it can result in important therapeutic and diagnostic yields. To our knowledge, this is the first study designed to evaluate safety and efficacy of intrahospital transport for patients receiving extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support.

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