Provision of ECPR during COVID-19: evidence, equity, and ethical dilemmas

Elliott Worku; Denzil Gill; Daniel Brodie; Roberto Lorusso; Alain Combes; Kiran Shekar

doi:10.1186/s13054-020-03172-2

Provision of ECPR during COVID-19: evidence, equity, and ethical dilemmas

Elliott Worku^*, Denzil Gill, Daniel Brodie, Roberto Lorusso, Alain Combes, Kiran Shekar

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

The use of extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR) to restore circulation during cardiac arrest is a time-critical, resource-intensive intervention of unproven efficacy. The current COVID-19 pandemic has brought additional complexity and significant barriers to the ongoing provision and implementation of ECPR services. The logistics of patient selection, expedient cannulation, healthcare worker safety, and post-resuscitation care must be weighed against the ethical considerations of providing an intervention of contentious benefit at a time when critical care resources are being overwhelmed by pandemic demand.

Original language	English
Article number	462
Number of pages	8
Journal	Critical Care
Volume	24
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1186/s13054-020-03172-2
Publication status	Published - 27 Jul 2020

Keywords

HOSPITAL CARDIAC-ARREST
RESUSCITATION
DECISIONS

Access to Document

10.1186/s13054-020-03172-2Licence: CC BY

Cite this

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abstract = "The use of extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR) to restore circulation during cardiac arrest is a time-critical, resource-intensive intervention of unproven efficacy. The current COVID-19 pandemic has brought additional complexity and significant barriers to the ongoing provision and implementation of ECPR services. The logistics of patient selection, expedient cannulation, healthcare worker safety, and post-resuscitation care must be weighed against the ethical considerations of providing an intervention of contentious benefit at a time when critical care resources are being overwhelmed by pandemic demand.",

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AU - Shekar, Kiran

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KW - DECISIONS

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