Extracorporeal Life Support (ECMO)
525 East 68th Street, M-404
New York, NY 10065
56-45 Main Street, 3S – Room 387
Flushing, NY 11355
263 7th Avenue, Suite 4H
Brooklyn, NY 11215
Some patients experience a sudden deterioration in heart or lung function so that the heart can no longer pump enough blood to the vital organs or the lungs cannot properly add oxygen to the blood. This serious condition may be caused by:
● Massive heart attack
● Viral and bacterial infection of the heart muscle (cardiomyopathy)
● Inflammatory disorder
Weill Cornell Medicine’s state-of-the-art surgical treatment options
The surgeons at Weill Cornell Medicine’s Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery offer exceptional care to patients with advanced heart or lung deterioration.
The extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is a group of devices that provide extracorporeal life support to the entire body so that the heart and lungs can heal and strengthen.
These devices help take the oxygen-poor blood form the venous system of the body, infuse the blood with oxygen, and pump the oxygenated blood to the body and vital organs. The heart and lungs are kept in a resting state.
The ECMO devices (circuit) consists of a:
● Pump that powers the circuit by pulling blood from the venous side and pushing it into the patient’s arterial circulation.
● Tubing that connects the pump to the body. One tube carries the dark venous blood from the veins to the pump. A second tube carries the bright red oxygenated blood back to the body.
● Oxygenator that saturates the blood with oxygen molecules, which are needed for the body to function properly.
● Electronic control system that allows specialists to monitor and adjust the speed of the pump and the amount of blood flowing through it.
Weill Cornell Medicine’s ECMO patients benefit from:
● Our record of excellent outcomes
● Our surgical team works with each patient to develop an individualized, comprehensive treatment plan
● Access to world-class imaging technology for the most accurate diagnosis possible
● Collaboration among a wide range of specialists, which ensures the best possible recovery
