• Takahiko Seo, Hisami Ando, Takahiro Ito, Hiroyuki Takagi, Yoshitaka Inagaki, and Akira Suzuki.
• Department of Pediatric Surgery, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, 65 Tsurumai-cho, Showa-ku, Nagoya 466-8550, Japan.
• Artif Organs. 2003 Feb 1; 27 (2): 192-8.

AbstractFor safer and simpler neonatal ECMO management, the authors have been developing an innovative, automatically-controlled ECMO machine using self-regulating blood pumps. The newest model is an air-driven, tube-type blood pump. A pair of blood pumps are placed in parallel and actuated alternately with compressed air. The pump flow is automatically regulated in accordance with hemodynamic changes of the body. The need for a venous reservoir is eliminated because the circuit does not generate excessive negative pressure when there are shortages of draining blood. Therefore, the priming volume of the circuit is only 85 ml. This ECMO apparatus has three driving modes, one of which is a "delay" mode. This enables the pump flow to easily be varied from 10 to 500 ml/min under automatic control, and it can be used when the pump flow is decreased for weaning. This newest ECMO apparatus was clinically used in 3 neonates with severe lung hypoplasia and persistent fetal circulation. The ECMO duration was 139 h to 168 h, and the maximum ECMO flow 71.3 to 109.0 ml/min/kg. Thanks to the self-regulation, intensive observation of the circuit was not necessary during ECMO. Damage to blood cells was less significant, and the use of blood products was only minimal (15.7 ml/kg/day) because a large volume of blood to stabilize the pump performance was not necessary. In conclusion, the automatically-controlled ECMO apparatus worked well without complications by changing the ECMO flow automatically in accordance with hemodynamic changes. This automatic ECMO system required fewer personnel expenditures and was also favorable in terms of hematological findings.

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