Does a distal perfusion catheter with a removable side port improve flow and prevent limb ischemia in patients on VA-ECMO?
The novel use of a distal perfusion catheter with a removable side port significantly increases flow and safely prevents limb ischemia in patients on VA-ECMO.
Risk of limb ischemia in patients on venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO) is minimized with the use of distal perfusion catheters (DPCs). However, conventional sheaths utilize a flow-limiting side port connection, reducing efficacy. We report 5 cases wherein we utilized a commercially available DPC with a removable side port in patients treated with VA-ECMO. The use of a DPC without a side port increased flow by 220% when compared to the use of a DPC with a side port. No patients experienced limb ischemia while on VA-ECMO.
Fadel et al. (Wed,) studied this question.