Autoregulation of ventilation with neurally adjusted ventilatory assist on extracorporeal lung support

Abstract

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) can support oxygenation and carbon dioxide elimination in severe lung failure. Usually it is accompanied by controlled mechanical ventilation. Neurally adjusted ventilatory assist (NAVA) is a new mode of ventilation triggered by the diaphragmatic electrical activity and controlled by the patient’s respiratory centre, which may allow a close interaction between ventilation and extracorporeal perfusion. This pilot study intended to measure the physiologic ventilatory response in patients with severe lung failure treated with ECMO and NAVA. We hypothesized that the combination of both methods could automatically provide a protective ventilation with optimized blood gases.