Early veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation is an effective strategy for traumatically injured patients presenting with refractory respiratory failure.

BACKGROUND: Venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VV ECMO) is used for respiratory failure when standard therapy fails. Optimal trauma care requires patients be stable enough to undergo procedures. Early VV ECMO (EVV) to stabilize trauma patients with respiratory failure as part of resuscitation could facilitate additional care. As VV ECMO technology is portable and prehospital cannulation possible, it could also be used in austere environments. We hypothesize that EVV facilitates injury care without worsening survival. METHODS: Our single center, retrospective cohort study included all trauma patients between January 1, 2014, and August 1, 2022, who were placed on VV ECMO. Early VV was defined as cannulation ≤48 hours from arrival with subsequent operation for injuries. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics. Parametric or nonparametric statistics were used based on the nature of the data. After testing for normality, significance was defined as a p < 0.05. Logistic regression diagnostics were performed. RESULTS: Seventy-five patients were identified and 57 (76%) underwent EVV. There was no difference in survival between the EVV and non-EVV groups (70% vs. 61%, p = 0.47). Age, race, and gender did not differ between EVV survivors and nonsurvivors. Time to cannulation (4.5 hours vs. 8 hours, p = 0.39) and injury severity scores (34 vs. 29, p = 0.74) were similar. Early VV survivors had lower lactic acid levels precannulation (3.9 mmol/L vs. 11.9 mmol/L, p < 0.001). A multivariable logistic regression analysis examining admission and precannulation laboratory and hemodynamic values demonstrated that lower precannulation lactic acid levels predicted survival (odds ratio, 1.2; 95% confidence interval, 1.02-1.5; p = 0.03), with a significant inflection point of 7.4 mmol/L corresponding to decreased survival at hospital discharge. CONCLUSION: Patients undergoing EVV did not have increased mortality compared with the overall trauma VV ECMO population. Early VV resulted in ventilatory stabilization that allowed subsequent procedural treatment of injuries. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic Care/Management; Level III.

Infant pertussis epidemiology and implications for tetanus toxoid, reduced diphtheria toxoid, and acellular pertussis (Tdap) vaccination: King County, Washington, 2002 through 2007.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the epidemiology of infant pertussis in King County, Washington, and to better understand the implications for tetanus toxoid, reduced diphtheria toxoid, and acellular pertussis (Tdap) vaccination among older children, adolescents, and adults. DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of reported pertussis cases among infants younger than 1 year, January 1, 2002, through December 31, 2007. SETTING: King County, Washington. PARTICIPANTS: Reported pertussis cases among infants younger than 1 year between 2002 and 2007. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Bordetella pertussis from a household member or close contact was the primary exposure. The main outcome measures were age and vaccination status, incidence by race/ethnicity, suspected exposure, and Tdap eligibility of household members and close contacts. RESULTS: Among 176 confirmed cases of infants with pertussis, the median age was 3 months (age range, 0-11 months); 80.1% were younger than 6 months. Seventy-seven percent were age-appropriately vaccinated. Between 2002 and 2007, the overall mean annual incidence was 136 cases per 100,000 infant population. Compared with a mean annual incidence of 73 cases per 100,000 infant population among whites, the incidence was 246 cases per 100,000 infant population among blacks (rate ratio [RR], 3.37; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.59-4.44) and 194 cases per 100,000 infant population among Hispanics (RR, 2.66; 95% CI, 2.02-3.53). Households were the suspected exposure location for 70.0% of cases. Case households had a median of 3 (range, 1-15) Tdap-eligible persons. CONCLUSIONS: The burden of infant pertussis in King County, Washington, was high between 2002 and 2007, especially among racial/ethnic minorities. Tdap vaccination of eligible household members and close contacts should be promoted as an additional means of protecting infants from pertussis.