Characteristics of Venous-Venous Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation
Related Bloodstream Infections
Abstract
Infectious complications have been shown to increase the morbidity of
venous-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VV-ECMO) population,
including the use of right ventricular assist devices. We aimed to
evaluate our VV-ECMO population for ECMO related bloodstream infections
(E-BSI) and characteristics that affect risk and overall outcomes. We
report a low infection rate of 2.7%. We postulate our low BSI rate may
be due to our use of perioperative antimicrobials as well as a majority
of our cannulations occurring in the operating room. Further
investigation into trends, risks, and outcomes related to E-BSI is
needed.