The Journal of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery
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J. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg. · Jan 2024
Lung Transplant Outcomes After Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Requiring Extracorporeal Life Support-Lessons from the Coronavirus Disease Pandemic.
Lung transplant for acute respiratory distress syndrome in patients supported with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation was rare before 2020, but was rapidly adopted to rescue patients with COVID-19 with lung failure. This study aims to compare the outcomes of patients who underwent lung transplant for COVID-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome and non-COVID acute respiratory distress syndrome, and to assess the impact of type and duration of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support on survival. ⋯ Despite prolonged periods of pretransplant extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support, selected patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome can undergo lung transplant safely with acceptable short-term outcomes. Appropriate selection criteria and long-term implications require further analysis.