OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to evaluate the amount of medication adsorbed into extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) circuits with a polymethylpentane membrane oxygenator and heparin-coated polyvinyl chloride tubing. METHODS: An ECMO circuit with the aforementioned components was set up ex vivo and primed with expired blood. Midazolam, lorazepam, morphine, and fentanyl were administered to the circuit. Fifteen minutes after medication administration, 60 mL of blood were removed and stored in a 60-mL syringe to serve as a control. Medication levels were drawn from the ECMO circuit (test) and control syringe (control) 15 minutes, 24 hours, and 48 hours after the medications were administered. ECMO circuit medication levels were compared to their corresponding syringe control medication levels. Descriptive statistics were used to determine the percentage of medication remaining in the blood and compare it to the control value. RESULTS: Except for morphine, there was a large decline in medication levels over the 48-hour period. Compared to control values, 17.2% of midazolam, 41.3% of lorazepam, 32.6% of fentanyl, and 102% of morphine remained in the ECMO circuit. CONCLUSION: Despite the use of newer components in ECMO circuits, a large quantity of medication is adsorbed into the ECMO circuit. Midazolam, lorazepam, and fentanyl all showed reductions in medication levels greater than 50%. Morphine may have advantages for patients on ECMO, as its concentration does not appear to be affected.

Staphylococcus aureus is a common bacterial etiology for infections in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Infections caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) can be difficult to treat, even when good source control is obtained. There are few data on treatment of MRSA abscess in the neonatal population. Vancomycin, clindamycin, daptomycin, ceftaroline, and linezolid are often used to treat MRSA infections in pediatric patients. Daptomycin and ceftaroline have been studied in adults as a salvage therapy for refractory MRSA infections. Few data exist on combination therapy for treatment of MRSA infection in neonatal or premature infant patients. This case report describes the successful use of intravenous (IV) daptomycin (6 mg/kg IV every 12 hours) plus ceftaroline (8 mg/kg IV every 8 hours) for 18 days after failure of daptomycin monotherapy to treat multiple hepatic abscesses and an infected thrombus caused by MRSA in a premature female born at 30 weeks of gestation. The patient had increased abscess size after daptomycin monotherapy and treatment was changed to combination therapy. With addition of the ceftaroline, the abscesses resolved entirely on ultrasonography within 3 weeks. While combination therapy was effective in this patient, additional research is needed to determine the most appropriate use for combination therapy for treatment of MRSA infections in the premature infant and neonatal population.

The drug of choice for treatment of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim, and second-line therapy usually consists of a fluoroquinolone. However, in patients with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency, neither sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim nor a fluoroquinolone is a preferred option as it may result in hemolysis. Currently, there is a paucity of data regarding treatment of S maltophilia infection in these patients. This case report presents a patient who was successfully treated with doxycycline and inhaled colistimethate.

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