Outcomes Associated With Preoperative Use of Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation in Children Undergoing Heart Operation for Congenital Heart Disease: A Multi‐institutional Analysis

Abstract Background There are very sparse data on patient outcomes related to the use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation ( ECMO ) prior to heart operation in children with congenital heart disease. This study was designed to evaluate this association using the Pediatric Health Information System ( PHIS ) database. Hypothesis We hypothesize that patients receiving ECMO prior to heart operation will have worse outcomes, including mortality, compared with patients receiving ECMO after heart operation. Methods Patients age ≤18 years receiving ECMO before or after pediatric heart operation (with or without cardiopulmonary bypass) at a PHIS ‐participating hospital from 2004 to 2013 were included. Multivariable logistic regression or Cox proportional‐hazards models were fitted to study the effect of timing of ECMO initiation in relation to cardiac surgery on study outcomes. Results A total of 3498 patients from 42 hospitals qualified for inclusion. Of these, 494 (14%) received ECMO prior to heart operation (presurgery ECMO ) and 3004 (86%) received ECMO after heart operation (postsurgery ECMO ). Unadjusted mortality was significantly lower in the presurgery ECMO group compared with the postsurgery ECMO group (30% vs 45%; P  < 0.0001). After adjusting for patient and center characteristics, odds of mortality were significantly lower in the presurgery ECMO group (odds ratio: 0.46, 95% confidence interval: 0.36‐0.59, P  < 0.0001). There were no significant differences in ECMO duration, length of hospital stay, and hospital charges between the 2 groups in adjusted models. Conclusions This study suggests that ECMO can be used with satisfactory outcomes prior to heart operation in children with congenital heart disease.