Veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA ECMO) is a technique used in patients with severe heart failure. The aim of this study was to evaluate its effects on left ventricular afterload and fluid accumulation in lungs with electrical impedance tomography (EIT). In eight swine, incremental increases of extracorporeal blood flow (EBF) were applied before and after the induction of ischemic heart failure. Hemodynamic parameters were continuously recorded and computational analysis of EIT was used to determine lung fluid accumulation. With an increase in EBF from 1 to 4 l/min in acute heart failure the associated increase of arterial pressure (raised by 44%) was accompanied with significant decrease of electrical impedance of lung regions. Increasing EBF in healthy circulation did not cause lung impedance changes. Our findings indicate that in severe heart failure EIT may reflect fluid accumulation in lungs due to increasing EBF.
- MeSH
- Electric Impedance MeSH
- Hemodynamics MeSH
- Coronary Circulation physiology MeSH
- Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation adverse effects methods MeSH
- Disease Models, Animal MeSH
- Lung physiopathology MeSH
- Swine MeSH
- Respiratory Insufficiency etiology pathology MeSH
- Heart Failure metabolism pathology therapy MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Female MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
