The objective of this study was to determine if propofol administration to veno-venous (VV) extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) patients was associated with more incidents of oxygenator failure when compared to patients who did not receive propofol. This was a single center, retrospective cohort study. The primary outcome of the study is oxygenator exchanges per ECMO day in patients who received propofol versus those who did not receive propofol. Patients were 18 years or older on VV-ECMO support between January 1, 2015 and January 31, 2018. Patients were excluded if they required ECMO support for less than 48 h or greater than 21 days. There were five patients in the propofol arm that required oxygenator exchanges and seven patients in the control arm. The total number of oxygenator exchanges per ECMO day was not significantly different between groups ( p = 0.50). When comparing those who required an oxygenator exchange and those who did not, there was no difference in the cumulative dose of propofol received per ECMO hour (0.64 mg/kg/h vs 0.96 mg/kg/h; p = 0.16). Propofol use in patients on VV-ECMO does not appear to increase the number of oxygenator exchanges.

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Background:The extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) circuit causes pharmacokinetic alterations of medications which impact drug selection and dosing. Although hydromorphone has a favorable pharmacokinetic profile, it is unclear whether hydromorphone provides better patient-centered benefits compared to fentanyl. The objective of this study is to compare opioid and sedative requirements in ECMO patients started on a fentanyl-versus hydromorphonebased analgesia regimen.Methods: This was a non-interventional retrospective cohort study. It was conducted at a single center in the cardiovascular intensive care units and cardiac intensive care units. We included venovenous (VV) or venoarterial ECMO patients. Patients who were started on a fentanyl continuous infusion within 24 h of cannulation were compared to patients started on a hydromorphone continuous infusion. Results:A linear mixed effects model was performed to compare doses of opioid, sedative, and propofol between groups over time. We included 28 hydromorphone patients and 53 fentanyl patients, with 85% on VV ECMO. There were no differences between hydromorphone and fentanyl groups in opioid or sedative (including propofol and benzodiazepine) doses for any ECMO day (p value for interaction .63 and .83, respectively). Propofol doses alone, however, were significantly higher in the fentanyl group on ECMO days three, four, and five.Conclusions: There appear to be no major differences in opioid or sedative requirements whether ECMO patients are initiated on a hydromorphone-or fentanyl-based regimen.