Sunday, November 5, 2017

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation

Would changing this to supply the brain with these pumped up oxygenated red blood cells save a bunch of brain cells from dying? We'll never know because there is no one in the world to ask that question of and have them take charge to find the answer.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extracorporeal_membrane_oxygenation
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), also known as extracorporeal life support (ECLS), is an extracorporeal technique of providing prolonged cardiac and respiratory support to persons whose heart and lungs are unable to provide an adequate amount of gas exchange or perfusion to sustain life. The technology for ECMO is largely derived from cardiopulmonary bypass, which provides shorter-term support.
This intervention has mostly been used on children, but it is seeing more use in adults with cardiac and respiratory failure. ECMO works by removing blood from the person's body and artificially removing the carbon dioxide and oxygenating red blood cells. Generally, it is used either post-cardiopulmonary bypass or in late stage treatment of a person with profound heart and/or lung failure, although it is now seeing use as a treatment for cardiac arrest in certain centers, allowing for treatment of the underlying cause of arrest while circulation and oxygenation are supported.
Veno-arterial (VA) ECMO for cardiac or respiratory failure.jpg

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