Alan H. Morris, MD, FCCPMurray, UT, Eliotte Hirshberg, MDSalt Lake City, UT, Russell R. Miller III, MDMurray, UT, Kimberly D. Statler, MDSalt Lake City, UT and R. Duncan Hite, MD, FCCPWinston-Salem, NC. doi: 10.1378/chest.10-1792 CHEST October 2010 vol. 138 no. 4 778-781
Extracorporeal life support (ECLS) (including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation [ECMO] and extracorporeal CO2 removal) can be used in patients with inadequate oxygen delivery, including ineffective oxygenation due to severe lung disease. The current 2009 influenza A(H1N1) [A(H1N1)] epidemic has promoted ECMO use2 due to the severe hypoxemia witnessed in several populations.2-7
Although not formally recommended, ECMO has been included among the “salvage therapies” listed on an important Web site (http://www.thoracic.org/clinical/critical-care/salvage-therapies-h1n1/pages/ecmo.php).
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