Bohman, J. Kyle

Utilization of venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO) is expanding, but dual VA-ECMO circuits to treat cardiogenic shock with refractory hypoxemia is unreported. We describe the case of combined cardiogenic and distributive shock due to necrotizing pulmonary blastomycosis. After initial central VA-ECMO cannulation, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) with increasing shunt resulted in significant central hypoxemia due to progressive ventilation-perfusion mismatch. An additional circuit provided complete oxygenation of the high circulating volume. After 4 months on support, he underwent successful heart-lung-kidney transplantation. Dual ECMO circuits are technically feasible and may be advantageous in specific circumstances of high pulmonary shunting resulting in excessive hypoxemia unbalanced with appropriate oxygen delivery.

BACKGROUND: ARDS remains a source of significant morbidity and mortality in the critically ill patient. The mainstay of therapy entails invasive mechanical ventilation utilizing a lung-protective strategy designed to limit lung injury associated with excessive stress and strain while the underlying etiology of respiratory failure is identified and treated. Less is understood about what to do once conventional ventilation parameters have been optimized but the patient's respiratory status remains unchanged or worsens. In 2015, a protocolized, stepwise approach to mechanical ventilation with partially automated and clearly defined thresholds for management changes was implemented at our institution. We hypothesized that, by identifying appropriate patients earlier, time-to-escalation and rescue therapy implementation would be shortened. METHODS: Subjects with severe ARDS, treated with prone positioning based on our institution's protocolized approach from December 2013 to August 2016 were included. Their baseline characteristics, severity of illness scores, and mechanical ventilation parameters were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: Baseline characteristics, tidal volumes, P aO 2 / F IO 2 , duration of ventilation after proning, and mortality were similar in both groups. Median (interquartile range [IQR]) PEEP at the time of proning was higher after the protocol implementation (12.5 cm H 2 O [IQR 6.5–19.4] vs 18 cm H 2 O [IQR 10–22], P = .386), and mean (IQR) respiratory system driving pressure was lower (16 cm H 2 O [IQR 13–36.2] vs 12 cm H 2 O [IQR 9–19.6], P = .029). Median (IQR) time from refractory hypoxemia identification to proning was shorter after protocol implementation (42.2 h [IQR 6.83–347.2] vs 16.3 h [IQR 1–99.7], I = .02), and P aO 2 / F IO 2 at 1 h after proning was higher. ICU and hospital LOS were shorter after the protocol implementation. CONCLUSIONS: Following the implementation of an early, evidence-based, protocolized approach to optimizing mechanical ventilation, subjects with true refractory hypoxemia were identified earlier and time to proning was significantly shorter. Despite improvement in the evaluation and management of refractory hypoxemia as well as time to initiation of prone positioning, mortality was unchanged and there was variation in the duration of the position.

Abstract Background The use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) in critically ill adults is increasing. Patients on ECMO are at high risk for infections, with 20.5% of adults acquiring infections while on ECMO. An Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) Infectious Disease Task Force statement concluded that no antibiotic prophylaxis is needed for patients on ECMO though it also noted that this was based on limited data. We implemented an antimicrobial prophylaxis protocol for patients on ECMO at our institution and analyzed antimicrobial use and outcomes in these patients with a pre- and post-analysis. Methods We conducted a retrospective review of 294 patients on ECMO between July 1, 2011 and July 1, 2017. An ECMO antimicrobial prophylaxis guideline was initially implemented on July 1, 2014; there was poor adherence to the guideline and antimicrobial use actually increased. A more restrictive protocol was implemented in November 2018 with input from stakeholders including cardiac surgeons, critical care and infectious disease (ID) providers. We had a cohort of 161 patients before (July 2014–November 2018) and 37 patients after (November 2018–April 2018) the implementation of the updated protocol. We evaluated primary outcomes of gross days of antimicrobial use, percent of antibiotic-free days and days of individual antimicrobial use, adjusted for APACHE scores and ECMO duration. Results When adjusted for days on ECMO, mean antibiotic days decreased after implementation of the protocol; for vancomycin (0.27 vs. 0.02, P < 0.0003), cefepime (0.15 vs. 0.02, P < 0.02), meropenem (0.09 vs. 0, P < 0.02), zosyn (0.16 vs. 0, P < 0.002), caspofungin (0.346, 0.138 P < 0.003). This was accompanied by a nonsignificant increase in mean fluconazole use (0.29 vs. 0.37, P < 0.3). There was no impact on patient mortality or nosocomial infection rate. Additional results can be found in table. Conclusion The use of an antimicrobial prophylaxis protocol in ECMO patients led to improvement in antimicrobial usage without increasing nosocomial infections in a population at a high risk of infection. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.

We retrospectively reviewed all pertinent extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) studies (January 1995 to September 2017) of adults with sepsis as a primary indication for intervention and its association with morbidity and mortality. Collected data included study type, ECMO configuration, outcomes, effect size, and other features. Advanced age was a risk factor for death. Compared with nonsurvivors, survivors had a lower median Sepsis-Related Organ Failure Assessment score on day 3 (15 vs. 18, p = 0.01). Biomarkers in survivors and nonsurvivors, respectively, were peak lactate (from two studies: 4.5 vs. 15.1 mmol/L, p = 0.03; 3.6 ± 3.7 vs. 3.3 ± 2.4 mmol/L, p = 0.850) and procalcitonin levels (41 vs. 164 ng/ml, p = 0.008). Bacteremia was associated with catheter colonization, and 90.5% of a group without bloodstream infections survived to discharge; ECMO weaning was possible for less than half the bloodstream infection group. Myocarditis portended favorable outcomes for patients with sepsis who received ECMO. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation was used in immunosuppressed patients with refractory cardiopulmonary insufficiency from severe sepsis with successful weaning from ECMO for most patients. Overall survival varied substantially among studies (15.38–71.43%). Existing studies do not present well-defined patterns supporting use of ECMO in sepsis because of sample sizes and disparate study designs.

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is used to treat severe hypoxemic respiratory failure and as a rescue therapy for patients with cardiopulmonary arrest within a narrow window of time. A failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA) was conducted to analyze the clinical and operational processes leading to delays in initiating ECMO. FMEA determined these highest-risk failure modes that were contributing to process failure: (1) ECMO candidacy not determined in time, (2) no or incomplete evaluation for ECMO prior to consult or arrest, (3) ECMO team not immediately available, and (4) cannulation not completed in time. When implemented collectively, a total of 4 interventions addressed more than 95% of the system failures. These interventions were (1) ECMO response pager held by a team required for decision, (2) distribution of institutionally defined inclusion/exclusion criteria, (3) educational training for clinicians consulting the ECMO team, and (4) establishment of a mobile ECMO insertion cart.