Pune: ECMO saves critically ill young dengue patient

At Ruby Hall Clinic, Director, ICU, Dr Prachee Sathe, said due to the combination of ITP and dengue, her platelet count couldn’t rise and she was constantly suffering from life threatening bleeds.

Anne Anish, 34, a motivational speaker and trainer, suffered from chronic ITP (when the immune system mistakenly attacks platelets leading to unusually low platelet count) and dengue. Anne was in Dubai last October when she noticed blood clots on her leg and decided to seek treatment in Pune. At Ruby Hall Clinic, Director, ICU, Dr Prachee Sathe, said due to the combination of ITP and dengue, her platelet count couldn’t rise and she was constantly suffering from life threatening bleeds. However, the biggest concern was her deteriorating immunity as a result of medicines that were needed to improve her platelets. Despite multiple platelet transfusions, her bleeding only worsened.

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In addition to bleeding gums, abdomen and urine, she suffered from ARDS or acute respiratory distress syndrome due to bleeding in the lungs — in the air sacs — which led to a drastic drop in her oxygen levels. It was impossible to give her oxygen. The timely use of the ECMO and cytokine removal with cytosorb technology was essential here to give her lungs a chance at recuperating. She was placed on the machine and needed it for fifteen days.”

Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation or ECMO is a medical device used to provide support to patients whose heart and lungs are unable to provide an adequate amount of gas exchange to sustain life. The machine extracts blood from a large vein near the heart and artificially oxygenates the blood outside the body before returning it to the body. Essentially, the machine acts as an artificial lung.

Recent improvements in technology and enhanced understanding of the best way to administer the treatment have made ECMO effective, with recent research showing 30 to 50 per cent improvement in survival rates in patients with ARDS, as was Anne’s case, Bomi Bhote, CEO, Ruby Hall Clinic, said.

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