The following is a summary of “Racial disparities in outcomes for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in the United States,” published in the JANUARY 2023 issue of Surgery by Richardson, et al.

It was not well known if racial differences existed in extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) results in patients for a wide range of reasons.

The National Inpatient Sample from 2016 to 2019 identified adults needing ECMO. Multivariable regressions were used to examine patient and hospital factors such as mortality, clinical results, and resource usage.

There were 43,190 adult ECMO patients, of which 67.8% were White, 18.1% were Black, and 10.4% were Hispanic. White mortality decreased from 47.5 to 41.0% (P = 0.002), whereas mortality for other groups remained constant. The Asian/Pacific Islander (PI) race had higher mortality rates than White individuals (AOR = 1.4, 95% CI = 1.1-2.0). Black race was connected to an increased risk of acute renal damage (AOR = 1.4, 95%-CI: 1.2-1.7), whereas Hispanic race was linked to an increased risk of neurologic complications (AOR 21.6; 95%-CI: 1.2-2.3). Additionally linked to higher additional expenses were those of African and Hispanic descent.

In the US, there were still racial discrepancies in the results of ECMO. The fundamental causes of such discoveries should be understood and addressed in future research.

Reference: americanjournalofsurgery.com/article/S0002-9610(22)00583-9/fulltext