Background: Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is a potential option for the management of severe acute respiratory failure secondary to COVID-19. Conflicting the use of this therapy is the known coagulopathy within COVID-19, leading to an incidence of venous thrombotic events of 25% to 49%. To date, limited guidance is available on optimal anticoagulation strategies in this population.
Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the utilization of a pharmacist-driven bivalirudin dosing protocol for anticoagulation in the setting of ECMO for COVID-19-associated respiratory failure.
Methods: This was a single-center retrospective chart review over a 9-month period of patients receiving bivalirudin while on ECMO. All patients with acute respiratory failure requiring ECMO with a positive SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction were included. Bivalirudin was dosed via aPTT monitoring after a starting dose of 0.2 or 0.3 mg/kg/h.
Results: There were 33 patients included in this study, all receiving mechanical ventilation. The most common starting dose of bivalirudin was 0.2 mg/kg/h, with an average time to therapeutic range of 20 hours. Compared to previous reports, rates of bleeding were low at 15.1%, and 6.1% of patients developed a new venous thromboembolic event while on ECMO. ECMO survival was 51.5%, with an ICU mortality rate of 48.5%.
Conclusion and relevance: In the first published report of its use within this population, bivalirudin was found to be a viable choice for anticoagulation in those patients on ECMO for severe respiratory failure secondary to COVID-19.
Keywords: adult respiratory distress syndrome; anticoagulation; critical care; extracorporeal membrane oxygenation; viral infections.