Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO)

Europe's largest ExtraCorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) centre is based at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester. Babies, children and adults are treated at the centre for reversible acute respiratory or cardio-respiratory disease.

ECMO is used when a patient has a serious condition which prevents the lungs or heart from working normally. The ECMO machine is very similar to heart and lung machines used during open-heart surgery. It is a supportive measure that uses an artificial lung (the membrane) to oxygenate the blood outside the body (extracorporeal).

There are four ECMO centres in the UK: Glenfield Hospital, Leicester, the Freeman Hospital, Newcastle, the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Glasgow and Great Ormond Street Hospital, London. The units work in co-operation to provide a national co-ordinated service.

Glenfield Hospital is the only ECMO centre in the UK which offers treatment to adults. The hospital is registered with ExtraCorporeal Life Support Organisation (ELSO), is part of the CESAR Trial and is one of the world's most experienced hospitals in using ECMO.

Links to useful websites:

About ECMO - a short guide to ECMO from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachussetts

ECMO Kids - a place for parents, friends and families of children who are, or have been, on ECMO to chat online. Topics available for discussion could be long term effects, mutual support and patient updates among other things.

Heart Link - East Midlands charity based at Glenfield Hospital that helped to set up the Glenfield ECMO unit in 1998