Cardiovascular Collapse During Mechanical Thrombectomy for Acute Pulmonary Embolism: The Role of Extracorporal Membrane Oxygenation in Patient Rescue

Abstract

Driven by the ability to avoid thrombolytics and provide a one-stop procedure with immediate hemodynamic improvement, there has been a dramatic increase in the use of mechanical thrombectomy (MT) devices for the treatment of massive or submassive pulmonary embolism (PE), as well as their widespread adoption by different levels of health care organizations. This study investigated the incidence and outcomes of severe cardiovascular collapse during MT procedures.