General thoracic and cardiovascular surgery
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Gen Thorac Cardiovasc Surg · Jul 2013
Venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation is effective against post-cardiotomy acute respiratory failure in adults.
Acute respiratory failure is a serious issue that occasionally occurs after weaning from cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) after heart surgery. This condition can be refractory to mechanical ventilation and the mortality rate is high. Venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VV-ECMO) is applied to treat acute lung failure after CPB at our institution. This report describes the use of VV-ECMO after cardiac surgery at a single institution. ⋯ Patients who develop severe acute respiratory failure after undergoing heart surgery using cardiopulmonary bypass derive a survival benefit from VV-ECMO.