Central venous catheter placement at the time of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation decannulation: is it safe?

Purpose: Because of concerns for infectious and hemorrhagic complications, methods of obtaining central venous access after extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) vary by institution. For infants requiring ECMO, it has been our practice to exchange the venous cannula for a tunneled central venous catheter (Broviac) at the time of decannulation. The purpose of this study is to compare the incidence of catheter-related complications in these patients to a national registry.

Increasing use of extracorporeal life support in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus sepsis in children.

Background: Pediatric cases of fulminant community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections requiring extracorporeal life support (ECLS) have been reported, but the frequency of ECLS use for severe presentations of staphylococcal disease is unknown.

Objective: To describe the frequency and characteristics of children with MRSA infections requiring ECLS using local and international databases.

Methods: The reasons for use of ECLS in children 0-18 yrs of age were determined in both the Vanderbilt Children's Hospital medical record system and the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization database during the years 1994-2005.

Clinical outcomes of 84 children with congenital heart disease managed with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation after cardiac surgery.

The purpose of our research was to study the clinical outcomes of children with congenital heart disease (CHD) requiring extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support after cardiac surgery at a tertiary care children's hospital. Retrospective review of all patients with CHD who required postcardiotomy ECMO between January 2001 and September 2004 (45 months) was undertaken. Various outcome predictors were tested for any association with survival to hospital discharge using univariate analysis.