New study supports use of ECMO for critically ill patients with obesity

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 29 (Xinhua) -- Adults with obesity may benefit from the use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), an advanced form of breathing support, when in intensive care for respiratory failure, according to a new study funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH).

ECMO's use was previously questioned for patients with obesity due to the belief that it may complicate treatment. However, the current findings, which published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, show that patients with obesity who received ECMO for acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) had lower mortality rates compared to patients with ARDS without obesity who received ECMO.