A new study, led by Dr Haruo Usuda from WIRF, in collaboration with the National University of Singapore and Tohoku University Hospital, has demonstrated for the first time the successful use of a pump-free ECMO (extracorporeal membranous oxygenation) system in premature lambs weighing under 2kg.
This innovation could offer a life-saving alternative for preterm infants with severe respiratory failure who are currently too small or fragile for conventional ECMO systems.
ECMO systems are used worldwide to treat babies with respiratory failure. ECMO is usually limited to preterm babies with a birth weight greater than 2 kg, or an adjusted gestational age of 34 weeks or older.
However, with advancements in neonatology and the increasingly higher survival rates of preterm infants born before 34 weeks, the demand to provide this technology to neonates of even younger gestational age without raising associated complications is growing.
Unlike traditional ECMO, which relies on external pumps, this system uses the infant’s own heart to drive blood through a membrane oxygenator – eliminating the need for invasive pumps and reducing the risk of neurological injury.
Key findings of the research demonstrated that nine out of 10 animals survived 48 hours on pumpless arteriovenous ECMO without ventilation, and the system maintained critical physiological parameters, including heart rate, without external support.
Dr Usuda said this study demonstrates that ECMO access could be expanded to a previously excluded population of vulnerable newborns.
“This research has allowed us to launch an entirely new avenue of research to address a key unmet challenge in neonatology – how to safely and effectively treat preterm infants weighing less than 2kg with respiratory failure.”
