Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Support in COVID-19 An International Cohort Study of the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization Registry

Using data for 1,035 COVID-19 patients age 16 or older from the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization Registry who had extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support initiated between January 16 and May 1, 2020, the authors found that 39 percent of those who were discharged from the hospital alive, died, or reached 90-day follow-up after ECMO initiation died. These findings were consistent with mortality rates in non-COVID-19 ECMO patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome and acute respiratory failure, which the authors suggest supports consideration of the use of ECMO in refractory COVID-19-related respiratory failure.