Extracorporeal
membrane
oxygenation
(ECMO)
Extracorporeal
Life
Support
(also
known as
extracorporeal
membrane
oxygenation,
ECMO) is
cardiopulmonary
bypass
pumping
done for
prolonged
periods
of time
at a
child's
bedside.
Cardiopulmonary
bypass
was
originally
developed
to allow
surgery
on the
pediatric
heart
during
"open
heart
surgery."
However,
we have
been
able to
adapt
the
technology
to
support
children
who
suffer
pulmonary
failure
from a
large
variety
of
causes.
Children
with
overwhelming
pneumonias,
those
born
with
severe
congenital
anomalies
such as
diaphragmatic
hernia
with
pulmonary
hypoplasia,
or
children
who have
heart
failure
following
cardiac
surgery
may be
candidates
for ECMO
support.
In all
of these
children,
ECMO
circulates
a
child's
blood so
that
oxygen
can be
supplied
to the
body and
gaseous
wastes
removed,
allowing
time for
healing
for a
child's
damaged
lungs.
These
highly
complex
procedures
are done
in the
Neonatal
Intensive
Care
Unit
or the
Pediatric
Intensive
Care
Unit
at
Children's
Memorial.
Staff
members
in the
Division
of
Pediatric
General
Surgery,
as well
as a
host of
other
supporting
services,
provide
consultation.
Full
parental
consent
is
sought
prior to
the
initiation
of the
ECMO
procedure,
which
generally
lasts
from
several
days to
as long
as three
to four
weeks.
Pediatric
surgeons
are
available
to
families
to keep
them
fully
informed
of a
child's
progress
when
undergoing
this
innovative
but
technologically
demanding
support.
Ancillary
care
services
and
surgery
are
provided
as
necessary,
and
pediatric
surgery
maintains
long-term
follow-up
services
for all
of the
children
who have
undergone
ECMO.
Pediatric
trauma/burn
care
Pediatric
trauma
remains
the
number
one
health
care
problem
of
children
in
America.
In fact,
pediatric
trauma
deaths
exceed
the next
most
common
cause of
childhood
fatalities
by four
times.
Children's
Memorial
Hospital
is a
City of
Chicago-designated
level
one
pediatric
trauma
center,
which
means
that the
hospital
is
staffed
and
equipped
to
handle
the most
severely
injured
children.
Approximately
800
trauma
victims
are seen
at the
hospital
each
year;
half are
admitted
to the
hospital.
Pediatric
general
surgeons
direct
the
trauma
service
and
provide
care via
the
immediate
response
team.
They
admit
the
children
to the
hospital,
with few
exceptions,
on the
pediatric
surgery
service
for the
first 24
to 48
hours of
care.
Because
trauma
can
involve
a host
of body
parts
and
organ
systems,
the
trauma
team
draws on
the
expertise
of all
the
hospital's
specialists.
The
services
of
orthopaedic
surgery,
neurosurgery,
and
intensive
care are
those
services
most
often
used in
concert
with
pediatric
surgery
for
multiple-trauma
victims.
All are
available
for care
and
consultation.
However,
pediatric
surgeons,
as the
initial
providers
of
injury
care,
often
take the
lead in
arranging
care
conferences
or
consultations
for
children
admitted
for
trauma
to
Children's
Memorial
Hospital.
