We present the case of a 13-year-old male with a complex congenital cardiac history who was supported with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for 394 days while awaiting cardiac transplantation. The patient underwent successful cardiac transplantation after 394 days of support with veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and is currently alive 2 years after cardiac transplantation. We believe that this case represents the longest period of time that a patient has been supported with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation as a bridge to cardiac transplantation.

We also review the literature associated with prolonged support with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. This case report documents many of the challenges associated with prolonged support with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, including polymicrobial bacterial and fungal infections, as well as renal dysfunction. It is possible to successfully bridge a patient to cardiac transplantation with prolonged support with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation of over 1 year; however, multidisciplinary collaboration is critical.

Coronavirus disease 2019 causes respiratory and systemic disease and has led to a sudden epidemic affecting people of all ages. Patients with congenital heart disease represent a high-risk population. In this article, we present a newborn who required extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support for acute respiratory failure in the early postoperative period due to exposure to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 after aortic arch repair and ventricular septal defect closure. To the best of our knowledge, this patient represents the first neonatal case of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection after congenital heart surgery and is the youngest patient to need extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support.

Chest radiography compares left ventricular decompression in the same patient supported with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation with atrial septal fenestration and subsequently supported with left ventricular assist device with apical cannulation.

Extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation is a life-saving modality to support the cardiac and/or pulmonary system as a form of life support in resuscitation, post-cardiotomy, as a bridge to cardiac transplantation and in respiratory failure. Its use in the paediatric and neonatal population has proven incredibly useful. However, extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation is also associated with a greater rate of mortality and complications, particularly in those with co-morbidities. As a result, interventions such as ventricular assist devices have been trialled in these patients. In this review, we provide a comprehensive analysis of the current literature on extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation for cardiac support in the paediatric and neonatal population. We evaluate its effectiveness in comparison to other forms of mechanical circulatory support and focus on areas for future development.

Multifocal atrial tachycardia has certain electrocardiographic similarities to atrial fibrillation. The mechanism of atrial fibrillation is heterogenous but in some cases may arise from a single ectopic driver with fibrillatory conduction to the rest of the atria. This has led to the speculation that multifocal atrial tachycardia may have a similar mechanistic unifocal site that disperses through the atrium in a fibrillatory pattern. Ivabradine has been reported to be efficacious in an adult with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation as well as in children with junctional or ectopic atrial tachycardias. This is the first report of successfully using ivabradine, a novel anti-arrhythmic If blocking agent, to convert multifocal atrial tachycardia in a 5-month-old critically ill infant to a pattern indicating a single ectopic atrial focus. This allowed the patient’s single atrial focus to be ablated with return to sinus rhythm and decannulation from ventriculoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. This case suggests that multifocal atrial tachycardia may arise from a single automatic focus with downstream fibrillatory conduction to the atria.

Pulmonary hypertension with transposition of the great arteries is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. At the worst end of the spectrum are patients who undergo extracorporeal support perioperatively. We describe our experience with three patients who received preoperative extracorporeal support and separated from cardiopulmonary bypass successfully on conventional postoperative care, with no significant deficits on follow-up.

Complications related to methamphetamine use and abuse are common presentations seen in the emergency department. Standard management focuses on addressing the central nervous system and cardiovascular effects with the use of sedation and hemodynamic support. We describe a case report of a patient with methamphetamine toxicity and subsequent severe cardiomyopathy refractory to conventional management that responded to cardiovascular support with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation therapy (ECMO). A 22-year-old female was admitted in severe cardiogenic shock following intravenous administration of methamphetamine and oral fentanyl use. Despite aggressive treatment with benzodiazepines, intravenous fluids, vasopressors, vasodilators, antibiotics and inotropes, the patient’s clinical status deteriorated, and she suffered a cardiac arrest. The patient was successfully resuscitated, and following the return of spontaneous circulation, ECMO was initiated. After 82 hours the patient was successfully weaned from ECMO with the recovery of her left ventricular function and no neurologic sequelae. The patient developed leg ischemia requiring embolectomy and open repair as a complication of ECMO cannulation. In our case, ECMO was used successfully in treating severe cardiac dysfunction from acute methamphetamine-induced cardiomyopathy and was used as a bridge to recovery. The complications seen in this patient emphasize the potential risks associated with this intervention and highlight the need for careful patient selection.

Accidental hypothermia can lead to untoward cardiac manifestations and arrest. This report presents a case series of severe accidental hypothermia with cardiac complications in three emergency patients who were treated with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) and survived after re-warming. The aim of this discussion was to encourage more clinicians to consider ECMO as a re-warming therapy for severe hypothermia with circulatory collapse and to prompt discussion about decreasing the barriers to its use.

NiehausMT, PechulisRM, WuJK, FreiS, HongJJ, SandhuRS, GreenbergMR. Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) for Hypothermic Cardiac Deterioration: A Case Series. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2016;31(5):570–571.