So what is ECMO? TNIE spoke to a cardiologist to find out what is an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation machine (ECMO) and how it helps a patient in critical care
ECMO is a machine that performs the function of the heart and lungs; it works by removing blood from a patient's body and doing the work of removing carbon dioxide from the blood and oxygenating the blood which is sent back into the body.
The machine provides respiratory and cardiac support and is used to revive a patient, depending on their condition, after one has suffered a cardiac arrest
A patient can usually be put on ECMO for a period of up to seven days, say doctors, after which there is a possibility that the patient would contract an infection
Doctors constantly monitor patients on ECMO to ensure that they have not contracted any infection, and, depending on that, decide how many days to keep a patient on it.
If signs of infection are seen, doctors recommend that the ECMO support is withdrawn
Patients are said to have a 50 to 70 percent of survival in cases of reversible respiratory failure, according to some clinical trials
