Continuous renal replacement therapy in patients receiving extracorporeal membrane oxygenation therapy

Methods of continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) in extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) patients include dedicated central venous cannula (CVC) (vCRRT), in-series with filter connected to ECMO circuit (eCRRT) or in-line with haemodiafilter incorporated within ECMO circuit. We assessed the efficacy and safety of eCRRT versus vCRRT in 20 ECMO-CRRT patients. Average filter lifespan was 42 vs 28 hours and filter runs completing 72hours were 40% vs 13.8% (eCRRT vs vCRRT, respectively). One incidence of ECMO circuit air embolus occurred (vCRRT). eCRRT achieved adequate filtration and increased filter lifespan, and has become our default for ECMO-CRRT if a pre-existing dialysis CVC is not present.

Successful Use of Extracorporeal Life Support and Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy in the Treatment of Cardiogenic Shock Induced by Tumor Lysis Syndrome in a Pediatric Patient With Lymphoma: A Case Report

The use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) in the treatment of cardiopulmonary failure in children with malignant tumors is controversial. There are few reports on the use of ECMO in the treatment of children with tumor lysis syndrome. This article reports a case of a 9-year-old girl who presented with hyperkalemia and cardiogenic shock. The discovery of an abdominal mass with critical ultrasound provided key evidence for the initial diagnosis of tumor lysis syndrome. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation was performed for 1 h. Veno-arterial ECMO was installed at the bedside to provide cardiopulmonary support for the patient and was combined with continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) to improve her internal environment. The patient was ultimately diagnosed with mature B-cell lymphoma with tumor lysis syndrome. A severe electrolyte disorder led to cardiogenic shock. After the electrolyte imbalance was corrected, the patient's heart function gradually improved, ECMO was successfully weaned, and chemotherapy was continued with the support of CRRT. One month after ECMO weaning, the organ function of the patient had recovered and there were no serious complications. In this case report, we paid attention to the rapid diagnosis of the etiology behind a patient's shock with critical ultrasound as well as the initiation and management of extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR), which provided us with valuable experience using VA-ECMO on critically ill children with tumors. It is also important evidence for the use of ECMO in the treatment of children with cardiopulmonary arrest secondary to malignancy.

Impacto de las terapias de depuración extrarrenal en la concentraciones plasmáticas de los antimicrobianos en la Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos

En los pacientes críticos con insuficiencia renal aguda es esencial manejar cuidadosamente la dosis de los antimicrobianos, especialmente si se requieren terapias de reemplazo renal continuas. La insuficiencia renal aguda conlleva por sí misma modificaciones clínicamente significativas de los parámetros farmacocinéticos de los fármacos, y la necesidad de terapias de reemplazo renal representa una variable adicional que debe considerarse para evitar una terapia antimicrobiana inadecuada. En muchos casos la eliminación extracorpórea de antimicrobianos puede ser relevante con el consiguiente riesgo de fracaso terapéutico relacionado con la infradosificación y/o posible aparición de resistencias bacterianas. En este escenario clínico, el conocimiento de las propiedades farmacocinéticas y farmacodinámicas de los distintos antimicrobianos es esencial para adaptar las dosis y/o intervalos de dosificación. El propósito de esta revisión es mostrar un resumen actualizado de la evidencia actual de este fenómeno y orientar al posible ajuste de fármacos. Para la elaboración de este manuscrito se ha llevado a cabo una revisión no sistemática de artículos indexados en MEDLINE (PubMed) de los últimos quince años, fecha de actualización diciembre 2019, utilizando las palabras clave “critically ill”, “acute kidney injury”, “antimicrobials”, “continuous renal replacement therapy” y “extracorporeal clearance”. Se excluyeron aquellos artículos realizados en población pediátrica y/o que no estuvieran publicados en inglés o español.