Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation complication

The use of antibiotic therapy is common in intensive care units and primarily involves beta-lactams. Its optimal implementation is made difficult by the pharmacokinetic changes inherent in critically ill patients.
Despite the current recommendations from the French Society of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care (SFAR) and the French Society of Pharmacology and Therapeutics (SFPT), there are no recommendations on prescription modalities for patients under veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO). The use of antibiotic therapy is common in VA-ECMO patients and their pharmacokinetic variability factors are then exacerbated.
We aim to conduct a prospective, multicenter, interventional study designed to identify predictive factors for failure to achieve therapeutic target circulating concentrations of beta-lactams in patients under VA-ECMO treated with one of the studied beta-lactams

Investigation of the potential prognostic role of non-invasive myocardial work in patients receiving veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation therapy.

In 2023, the second Pediatric Acute Lung Injury Consensus Conference (PALICC-2) updated the diagnostic and management guidelines for Pediatric Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (PARDS). The guidelines do not provide sufficient evidence-based recommendations on whether prone positioning ventilation is necessary for severe PARDS patients. However, the effectiveness of Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) in treating severe PARDS has been fluctuating around 70% according to recent data from Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO).
In 2018, the Randomized Evaluation of Sedation Titration for Respiratory Failure (RESTORE) study group conducted a retrospective analysis and concluded that ECMO does not significantly improve survival rates for severe PARDS. However, this retrospective study mainly focused on data from North America, with significant variations in annual ECMO support cases among different centers, which may introduce bias. With advancements in ECMO technology and materials, ECMO has become safer and easier to operate. In recent years, pediatric ECMO support technology has rapidly grown in mainland China and is increasingly being widely used domestically to rescue more children promptly.
ECMO can also serve as a salvage measure for severely ARDS children who have failed conventional mechanical ventilation treatment. When optimizing ventilator parameters (titrating positive end expiratory pressure (PEEP) levels, neuromuscular blockers, prone positioning), strict fluid management alone cannot maintain satisfactory oxygenation (P/F<80mmHg or Oxygen Index (OI) >40 for over 4 hours or OI >20 for over 24 hours), initiating ECMO can achieve lung-protective ventilation strategies with ultra-low tidal volumes to minimize ventilator-associated lung injury.