Prevalence of hematologic complications on extracorporeal membranous oxygenation in critically ill pediatric patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Objectives: Despite advances in Extracorporeal Membranous Oxygenation (ECMO) equipment, hematologic complications remain significant in critically ill children. The aim of this study is to summarize prevalence of hematologic complications for children and neonates.Methods: MEDLINE, PubMed and Scopus databases were searched focusing on the period from January 01, 2017 to October 01, 2022. The population included critically ill children and neonates with hematologic complica-tions. The review included all aspects of related complications including hemorrhage, thrombosis, and hemolysis. We performed random effects meta-analyses. The primary outcome measure was overall hematologic compli-cations. Secondary outcomes are changes in the prevalence of hemorrhagic complications. Risk of bias of included studies was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute checklist.Results: The systematic search identified 37 studies totaling 10,659 critically ill pediatric patients receiving ECMO. The pooled prevalence of hemorrhagic complications, thrombotic complications and hemolysis among pediatric patients requiring ECMO was 43.7 % (95 % CI: 28.6 % to 58.9 %, P < 0.001), 27.6 % (95 % CI: 20.4 % to 34.8 %, P < 0.001), 34.3 % (95 % CI: 22.9 % to 45.7 %, P < 0.001). The prevalence of hemorrhagic com-plications was represented in descending order: surgical site (21.6 %, 95 % CI: 10.3 % to 32.9 %); cannulation site (20.6 %, 95 % CI: 11.8 % to 29.3 %); intracranial (12.2 %, 95 % CI: 9.5 % to 15.0 %); pulmonary (7.7 %, 95 % CI: 5.9 % to 9.6 %); gastrointestinal (6.0 %, 3.7 % to 8.4 %). For the assessment of thrombotic complications, thrombosis in cannulation site had a higher prevalence (28.5 %, 95 % CI: 22.1 % to 34.9 %), followed by DIC (13.5 %, 95 % CI: 8.7 % to 18.3 %) and intracranial thrombosis (4.5 %, 95 % CI: 1.4 % to 7.6 %). Predictors of increased prevalence of hemorrhagic complications included age (P = 0.017) and VV-ECMO support mode (P = 0.029).Conclusions: Among critically ill pediatric patients, there was a series of hematologic complications can occur during ECMO support. Physicians should pay special attention to the management and establish appropriate treatment programs to reduce the occurrence of hematologic complications.