Anticoagulation during ECMO: The Past, Present and Future | Insight Medical Publishing

In recent years, many medical centres started to use extracorporeal membrane oxygenator (ECMO) support as the last treatment option for critically ill patients when the conventional therapy fails. There are significant improvements in ECMO management since the early days of its application. In this report, we aimed to review several aspects in this complex treatment modality. One of the main areas reviewed in this article will be the anticoagulation strategy used during ECMO support and the tests utilized for monitoring coagulation parameters. Additionally, technologies used in ECMO circuits and new advances in the field were reviewed.