Echocardiographic Findings in Critically Ill COVID-19 Patients Treated With and Without Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation

Objectives: To describe echocardiographic findings among mechanically ventilated patients with COVID-19 acute respiratory distress syn- drome, comparing those with and without venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VV ECMO) support. Design: Single-center, retrospective cohort study. Setting: Intensive care unit (ICU) of a quaternary academic center. Participants: Patients with COVID-19 admitted between March 2020 and June 2021 receiving mechanical ventilation, with an echocardiogram within 72 hours of admission. Interventions: Admission and follow-up echocardiograms during ICU stay. Measurements: Patient characteristics and echocardiographic findings were analyzed. Mortality odds ratio (OR) for right ventricular (RV) sys- tolic dysfunction and acute cor pulmonale (ACP) was calculated. Main Results: Among 242 patients, 145 (60%) received VV ECMO. Median (IQR) PaO2/FiO2 2 /FiO 2 was 76 (65-95) and 98 (85-140) in ECMO and non-ECMO patients, respectively (p 0.001). Initial echocardiograms showed no significant differences in left ventricular systolic dysfunction (10% v 15 %, p = 0.31) and RV systolic dysfunction (38% v . 27%, p = 0.27) between ECMO and non-ECMO patients. ACP was more frequent in the ECMO group at baseline (41% v . 26 %, p = 0.02). During the ICU stay, patients on ECMO exhibited a higher prevalence of RV systolic dysfunction (55% v 34%, p = 0.001) and ACP (51% v 26%, p = 0.002). RV systolic dysfunction (OR 1.99; 95% CI 1.09-3.63) and ACP (OR 2.95; 95% CI 1.55-5.62) on the follow-up echocardiograms were associated with higher odds of ICU mortality. Conclusions: The prevalence of echocardiographic abnormalities, in particular RV dysfunction, was frequent among patients with COVID-19 receiving VV ECMO support and was associated with worse clinical outcomes. (c) 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)