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Hematology
One-Hour Concurrent Session

Future Strategies for ECMO Anticoagulation

Monday, February 24, 2025
9:45am – 10:45am Eastern Time
Location: W414
CE: 1

Extracorporeal life support devices include extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), which has been shown to decrease morbidity in patients with cardiac or respiratory failure. ECMO use is limited by bleeding and thrombotic risks associated with anticoagulation. Several observation studies have found a bleeding and thrombotic rate greater than 40% for ECMO. Physicians must balance the paradoxical hemostatic balance between circuit-associated inappropriate platelet activation and loss of coagulation factors, sheer stress on the blood components circulating through the pump and oxygenator, the patient’s underlying condition, and an ECMO-elicited inflammatory response leading to endothelial dysfunction. This session will discuss novel therapeutics, monitoring, and ECMO support devices, including preclinical research and early clinical studies on new ways to decrease ECMO coagulation complications. Speakers are experts on novel therapeutics, monitoring, and ECMO support devices.

Learning Objectives:

  • Describe the mechanisms behind extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) bleeding and clotting complications, including novel therapeutics that target surface activation and cell-mediated activation such as lymphocytes, platelets, and endothelial cells
  • Describe the technical development of ECMO devices, including novel circuit designs, coatings, oxygenators, and blood pumps that are expected to improve ECMO therapy and decrease complications
  • Describe the history of ECMO coagulation monitoring assays and novel methods to improve anticoagulation therapy, including viscoelastic testing, ultrasound, and measures of fibrinolysis

Presentations:

  • 9:50am – 10:05am Eastern Time
    Novel Therapeutics for ECMO Anticoagulation

    Ali McMichael, MD (she/her/hers) – Phoenix Children's Hospital

  • 10:05am – 10:20am Eastern Time
    Novel Monitoring for ECMO Anticoagulation

    Oliver Karam, MD, PhD (he/him/his) – Yale School of Medicine

  • 10:20am – 10:35am Eastern Time
    Novel ECMO Designs to Minimize Bleeding and Clotting

    Teryn R. Roberts, PhD (she/her/hers) – Autonomous Reanimation and Evacuation Research Institute