Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: How do we Expand Capacity in the COVID-19 Era?
Despite advances in medical technology, the mortality rate for severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) remains high at around 40%. In recent years, multiple studies, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses, including the study in this issue of Heart, Lung and Circulation published by Wang and colleagues, have indicated that treatment with veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VV-ECMO) may be associated with better outcomes in severe ARDS than conventional mechanical ventilation.