• Hanane Hireche-Chikaoui, Martin R Grübler, Andreas Bloch, Stephan Windecker, Stefan Bloechlinger, and Lukas Hunziker.
• Department of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
• Crit. Care Med. 2018 May 1; 46 (5): e459-e464.

ObjectivesCardiogenic shock constitutes the final common pathway of cardiac dysfunction associated with tissue hypoperfusion and organ failure. Besides treatment of the underlying cause, temporary mechanical circulatory support serves as a supportive measure. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation can effectively prevent hypoxemia and end-organ dysfunction, but knowledge about patient selection, risks, and complications remains sparse.Data SourcesClinical observation.Study SelectionCase report and review of the literature.Data ExtractionRelevant clinical information. Online databases, including PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and OVID, were searched for previous publications.Data SynthesisWe report six cases of patients in refractory cardiogenic shock receiving emergency femoral veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support complicated by echocardiographic evidence of absent blood flow, sedimentation, and thrombus formation in the aortic root.ConclusionsPatients in cardiogenic shock who require femoral veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support are at risk of developing a state of nonejecting heart with thrombus formation in the aortic root. Echocardiography is the cornerstone of diagnosis and documentation of treatment effects. Depending on the likelihood of the presence of clinically relevant thrombotic material in the aortic root, we propose a treatment algorithm for this group of high-risk patients.

41 keywords...

hide…