Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) contributes to coagulopathy, necessitating systemic anticoagulation to prevent thrombosis. Traditionally, unfractionated heparin (UFH) has been the anticoagulant of choice, however, due to many inadequacies new evidence suggests benefit with the use of direct thrombin inhibitors. This retrospective cohort sought to evaluate the safety and efficacy of bivalirudin compared to UFH in ECMO patients. Primary endpoints included incidence of bleeding and thrombosis. Percent time in therapeutic range (TR), time to achieve TR and number of dose titrations required to maintain TR were calculated to assess efficacy of institutional protocols. Overall incidence of thrombosis was low, with one event in the bivalirudin group and no events in the UFH group. No difference was found in rates of bleeding between groups (6% vs. 10%, P = 0.44). Bivalirudin yielded higher percent time in TR (86% vs. 33%, P < 0.001), faster time to TR (2 vs. 18 hr, P < 0.001) and required fewer dose adjustments to maintain TR (2 vs. 11, P < 0.001) compared to UFH. These results suggest bivalirudin and UFH are associated with similar rates of bleeding and thrombosis in patients requiring ECMO support. Our results demonstrate the favorable pharmacokinetic profile of bivalirudin, and its ability to consistently maintain TR when compared to UFH.

Pharmaceutical costs for patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) constitute a large portion of hospital drug budgets. Unfortunately, prices for medications commonly used in the ICU are on the rise for a variety of reasons. In particular, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Unapproved Drugs Initiative, generic manufacturers cornering the marketplace, drug shortages, and regulatory device changes are major drivers of pharmaceutical price escalation affecting costs in the ICU. Furthermore, traditional high acquisition cost items still pose challenges to controlling costs. To offer strategies to mitigate the rising costs of pharmaceuticals in the ICU setting, we searched the PubMed/Medline and International Pharmaceutical Abstracts databases and other related sources to identify published cost-saving protocols concerning specific medications that are affected by rising prices or have traditional high acquisition costs. In the absence of specific protocols, we offer possible cost-saving initiatives based on published literature regarding specific agents or based on our own diverse set of experiences. Finally, we review suggested clinical and operational activities at an institutional level to address these rising drug costs in the ICU setting.

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