A new pumpless extracorporeal interventional lung assist in critical hypoxemia/hypercapnia.
OBJECTIVE
Pump-driven extracorporeal gas exchange systems have been advocated in patients suffering from severe acute respiratory distress syndrome who are at risk for life-threatening hypoxemia and/or hypercapnia. This requires extended technical and staff support.


METHODS
We report retrospectively our experience with a new pumpless extracorporeal interventional lung assist (iLA) establishing an arteriovenous shunt as the driving pressure.


METHODS
University hospital.


METHODS
Ninety patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome.


METHODS
Interventional lung assist was inserted in 90 patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome.


RESULTS
Oxygenation improvement, carbon dioxide elimination, hemodynamic variables, and the amount of vasopressor substitution were reported before, 2 hrs after, and 24 hrs after implementation of the system. Interventional lung assist led to an acute and moderate increase in arterial oxygenation (Pao2/Fio2 ratio 2 hrs after initiation of iLA [median and interquartile range], 82 mm Hg [64-103]) compared with pre-iLA (58 mm Hg [47-78], p < .05). Oxygenation continued to improve for 24 hrs after implementation (101 mm Hg [74-142], p < .05). Hypercapnia was promptly and markedly reversed by iLA within 2 hrs (Paco2, 36 mm Hg [30-44]) in comparison with before (60 mm Hg [48-80], p < .05], which allowed a less aggressive ventilation. For hemodynamic stability, all patients received continuous norepinephrine infusion. The incidence of complications was 24.4%, mostly due to ischemia in a lower limb. Thirty-seven of 90 patients survived, creating a lower mortality rate than expected from the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score.


CONCLUSIONS
Interventional lung assist might provide a sufficient rescue measure with easy handling properties and low cost in patients with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome and persistent hypoxia/hypercapnia.
Department of Anesthesiology, University Hospital of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany.
Thomas
T
Bein
Frank
F
Weber
Alois
A
Philipp
Christopher
C
Prasser
Michael
M
Pfeifer
Franz-Xaver
FX
Schmid
Bernhard
B
Butz
Dietrich
D
Birnbaum
Kai
K
Taeger
Hans J
HJ
Schlitt
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001166:Arteriovenous Shunt, Surgical; D015199:Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006935:Hypercapnia / Q000628:therapy*; D000860:Hypoxia / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012128:Respiratory Distress Syndrome / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D016019:Survival Analysis