Minimizing Systemic Inflammation during Cardiopulmonary Bypass in the Pediatric Population

Cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) is known to cause a systemic inflammatory response. Inflammation includes several cascade activations: complement, cytokine, and coagulation. The early phase is triggered by blood contact with the synthetic bypass circuit and the late phase by ischemia-reperfusion and endotoxemia. Systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) is constant following cardiac surgery; however, a compensatory anti-inflammatory response is also constant and the clinical manifestations (varying from uncomplicated SIRS to shock and multiple organ dysfunction) depend on the balance between the two responses. When overexpressed, the inflammatory response may significantly increase a patient’s risk. Minimization of systemic inflammation is a major concern and several strategies aiming to inhibit the inflammatory response are described. None of them is satisfactory, but the “control” of the inflammatory response extent is likely to require a multimodal approach. This review aims to describe the strategies proposed to reduce CPB-related systemic inflammation.