Extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in relation to organ donation

Highlights from the 34th Annual Meeting of the European Association for Cardio‐Thoracic Surgery

“…This study demonstrated that predictors of survival were a (a) shockable rhythm, (b) transient return of spontaneous circulation during CPR, and (c) prehospital implantation. 2 The importance of having a dedicated eCPR program along with established hospital protocols, stringent patient selection criteria, and frequent evaluation of efficacy and outcomes were emphasized.…”

“…Dr Erwan Flecher from Rennes, France, presented on the topic of whether “eCPR is the gold standard in the 21st Century?” Dr Flecher highlighted the results from the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) registry 1 for eCPR in out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest patients with an overall survival to hospital discharge of 27%. In addition, Dr Flecher also highlighted a registry study 2 which demonstrated that there were no differences in survival on head‐to‐head comparison of 525 patients with out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest who underwent eCPR (8.4%) and 12 666 patients with out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest (8.6%) who underwent conventional CPR. This study demonstrated that predictors of survival were a (a) shockable rhythm, (b) transient return of spontaneous circulation during CPR, and (c) prehospital implantation 2 .…”

“…In addition, Dr Flecher also highlighted a registry study 2 which demonstrated that there were no differences in survival on head‐to‐head comparison of 525 patients with out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest who underwent eCPR (8.4%) and 12 666 patients with out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest (8.6%) who underwent conventional CPR. This study demonstrated that predictors of survival were a (a) shockable rhythm, (b) transient return of spontaneous circulation during CPR, and (c) prehospital implantation 2 . The importance of having a dedicated eCPR program along with established hospital protocols, stringent patient selection criteria, and frequent evaluation of efficacy and outcomes were emphasized.…”

How Can We Improve Survival from Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest?

“…Although research has yet to show an improvement in survival, an increase in successful organ donation among extracorporeal membrane oxygenation recipients suggests that further research is warranted. 13 So whether it's through advances in technology, training, or techniques, at WEM, we're eager to highlight the ways in which outcomes from OHCAs can be improved.…”

“…Although research has yet to show an improvement in survival, an increase in successful organ donation among extracorporeal membrane oxygenation recipients suggests that further research is warranted. 13…”