Venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for cardiogenic shock after coronary endarterectomy

Background: Clinical outcomes of cardiogenic shock patients who were supported with venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO) after coronary endarterectomy (CE) have not yet been reported. We conducted a retrospective observational study to evaluate the short-term outcomes of patients supported with VA-ECMO after CE. Methods: Patients (n = 32) who received VA-ECMO refractory cardiogenic shock after CE between January 2011 and December 2020 at the Beijing Anzhen Hospital were reviewed retrospectively. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors independently associated with in-hospital mortality. Results: Twenty patients (63%) could be weaned from VA-ECMO, and 12 patients (38%) survived to hospital discharge. The median (interquartile range [IQR]) time on VA-ECMO support was 4 (3–6) days. The median (IQR) length of ICU stay and hospital stay were 9 (5–13) and 20 (15–27) days, respectively. Neurological complications were observed in 4 (13%) of the patients. ECMO-related complications occurred in 9 (28%) of the patients. SAVE score was identified as an independent protective factor for in-hospital mortality (OR, 0.70; 95% CI, 0.54–0.91; p = 0.009). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for SAVE score was 0.83 (95% CI, 0.67–0.98). SOFA score (0.78; 95% CI, 0.62–0.94) and EuroSCORE (0.79; 95% CI, 0.62–0.97) also exhibited good performances. Conclusions: VA-ECMO is an acceptable technique for the treatment of cardiogenic shock in patients undergoing CE. SAVE score might be a useful tool to predict survival for these patients. Prospective studies are needed to assess long-term outcomes of hospital survivors.