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Quick Tip for Families in Intensive Care: How Long Can a Critically Ill Patient Stay on ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation)? (Veno-Arterial [VA] vs Veno-Venous [VV] ECMO Explained)
“How long can a critically ill patient stay on ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation)? (Veno-Arterial vs Veno-Venous ECMO explained).”
My name is Patrik Hutzel from intensivecarehotline.com, where we instantly improve the lives for families of critically ill patients in intensive care so that you can make informed decisions, have peace of mind, control, power, and influence, making sure your loved one gets best care and treatment always, even if your loved one is not a doctor or a nurse in intensive care.
So obviously, today, I want to answer the question, “How long can a critically ill patient stay on ECMO?” I will also explain the difference between VA and VV ECMO.
Now, before I answer that. Let’s quickly define ECMO. ECMO stands for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. It’s the highest form of life support available in intensive care. It’s basically a heart-lung machine that can replace the function of the lungs or both the heart and the lungs, depending on whether it’s a VV, which stands for veno-venous ECMO, or a VA, which stands for veno-arterial ECMO. So, let’s break this down.
Let’s look at VV ECMO first, again, that’s veno-venous ECMO. VV ECMO is used when the lungs have failed, but the heart is still working. For example, this could be in patients with severe ARDS (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome), COVID (Coronavirus disease), pneumonia, or after lung transplantation when the lungs need time to heal and recover. Patients can often stay on VV ECMO for weeks, sometimes even months, as long as there’s a recovery trajectory or a bridge to a lung transplant. I have personally seen patients on VV ECMO for up to couple of months. However, the longer a patient is on ECMO, the higher the risk of complications such as bleeding, clotting, or infection.
Let’s look at VA ECMO (veno-arterial ECMO). VA ECMO is used when both the heart and the lungs are failing. For example, this can be after a cardiac arrest, heart failure, or during cardiogenic shock. VA ECMO is usually more time critical and often shorter in duration compared to VV ECMO. Most patients on VA ECMO are supported for a few days to maybe 3 weeks until the heart recovers. Often a ventricular assist device (VAD) is implanted, or a heart transplant is also possible during that time window. Staying longer than that on VA ECMO significantly increases the risk of major complications such as stroke, limb ischemia, or multi-organ failure.
So, how long can a critically ill patient stay on ECMO? It really depends on the underlying condition, whether it’s VV or VA ECMO and whether there’s a realistic pathway to recovery, transplant, or long-term mechanical support.
In summary, VV ECMO, often weeks to months, sometimes up to 90 days or more in rare cases. VA ECMO, usually a few days to up to 3 weeks, rarely beyond 3 to 4 weeks unless bridging to a heart transplant or a left ventricular or right ventricular assist device.
In summary, if your loved one is on ECMO, the real question isn’t only how long they can stay on ECMO, it’s also why they are on ECMO, what the plan is moving forward and what the risks and benefits are in their specific situation.
That’s exactly where we can help you here at intensivecarehotline.com. We understand intensive care inside out, and we can help you in making sure your loved one gets best care and treatment always. We can review medical records, talk to doctors and nurses directly, and help you get real results while your loved one is critically ill in intensive care.
I have worked in critical care nursing for 25 years in three different countries where I worked as a nurse manager for over 5 years in intensive care. I’ve been consulting and advocating for families in intensive care since 2013 here at intensivecarehotline.com. I can very confidently say that we have saved many lives with our consulting and advocacy because of our insights. You can verify that on our testimonial section at intensivecarehotline.com. You can verify it on our intensivecarehotline.com podcast section where we have done client interviews because our advice is absolutely life changing.
The biggest challenge for families in intensive care is simply that they don’t know what they don’t know. They don’t know what to look for. They don’t know what questions to ask. They don’t know their rights, and they don’t know how to manage doctors and nurses in intensive care.
That’s why we help you to improve your life instantly, making sure you make informed decisions, have peace of mind, control, power, and influence, making sure your loved one gets best care and treatment always. That’s why you can join a growing number of members and clients that we have helped over the years, saving their loved ones’ lives.
That’s why I do one on one consulting and advocacy over the phone, Zoom, WhatsApp, whichever medium works best for you. I talk to you and your families directly. I handhold you through this once in a lifetime situation that you simply cannot afford to get wrong. When I talk to families directly, I also talk to doctors and nurses directly, asking all the questions that you haven’t even considered asking but must be asked when you have a loved one critically ill in intensive care.
I also represent you in family meetings with intensive care teams.
We also do medical record reviews in real time so that you can get a second opinion in real time. We also do medical record reviews after intensive care if in case you have unanswered questions, if you need closure, or if you are suspecting medical negligence.
We also have a membership for families of critically ill patients in intensive care, and you can become a member if you go to intensivecarehotline.com, if you click on the membership link, or if you go to intensivecaresupport.org directly. In the membership, you have access to me and my team, 24 hours a day, in the membership area and via email, and we answer all questions intensive care related. In the membership, you also have exclusive access to 21 eBooks and 21 videos that I have personally written and recorded. All of that will help you to improve your life instantly, make informed decisions, have peace of mind, control, power and influence, making sure your loved one gets best care and treatment always.
All of that you get at intensivecarehotline.com. Call us on one of the numbers on the top of our website or simply send us an email to [email protected] with your questions.
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Thank you so much for watching.
This is Patrik Hutzel from intensivecarehotline.com and I will talk to you in a few days.
Take care for now.
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