Abstract

Pumpless extracorporeal interventional lung assist (iLA) is a promising respiratory rescue system permitting protective lung ventilation for severe respiratory failure. Herein, we report a case of prolonged iLA support with regards to a patient exhibiting severe hypercapnic respiratory failure. A 51-year-old female patient with metastatic endometrial carcinoma developed progressive hospital-acquired pneumonia and was intubated in order to restore respiratory failure. Despite maximal mechanical ventilator care, her clinical condition deteriorated due to severe respiratory acidosis. The iLA was performed for the management of refractory hypercapnia. The total duration of iLA support was 23 days without any vascular complications, however, she could not survive because of oxygenation failure.

• Keywords: extracorporeal circulation;hypercapnia;respiratory insufficiency;