Taking a closer look at ECMO, how it helps treat lung, heart issues

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- We are taking a closer look at ECMO, a machine that has saved thousands of lives over the past 50 years and has now been an essential tool in the fight against COVID.

Chantel Marshall was busy on her job at an animal shelter when stifling July heat triggered an asthma attack.

"And then the wheezing started, the coughing started," she said.

By the end of the day, Marshall went to Temple Hospital's emergency department.

"I was like gasping for air, trying to get air," she said. "It just went black. And then I woke up in the ICU."

An ECMO device was doing the work for Marshall's heart and ailing lungs.

"We have blood that's coming out of the patient," said Dr. Matthew Gordon, a critical care specialist at Temple Health.

Dr. Gordon says ECMO, which is short for Extra-Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation, can be used when either the lungs or heart are failing. It uses large blood vessels in either the neck or the groin.

"We can take a large percentage of our blood circulated externally through this machine, and deliver oxygen, clear carbon dioxide, and in some cases, actually provide a blood pressure as we pump the blood back into the body," he explained.

ECMO isn't really a treatment.

"It provides us time to figure out and diagnose the problem, and then to try some treatment options," he said. "Or to provide us time for the body to heal itself."

ECMO can also be a bridge to a transplant. While on ECMO, patients don't just lie in bed.

"We try and have them awake and working with physical therapy throughout their ICU stay."

The technology does have risks, such as infections, and brain or gastrointestinal bleeds. But doctors continually work on those.

"When it comes to ECMO, experience is really key. So having a high-volume center like we do is really imperative."

And Marshall is grateful for that.

"I wouldn't be alive if it wasn't for them," she said.

ECMO has been used extensively for severe cases of COVID, which attacks both the heart and lungs.

Early on, it also gave doctors time to develop drug regimens for the virus.