Acute cardiac care & resuscitationCohort study
The association between early arterial oxygen and carbon dioxide with neurologic outcomes after pediatric ECPR in children with cardiac disease
- Retrospective cohort study
- single center
Authors' conclusion
In children with cardiac disease, early arterial oxygen changes may have a stronger association with SHD with favorable neurological outcome than carbon dioxide fluctuations. Further multicenter analyses are warranted to further explore these observations.
Study context
- Population
- Children with cardiac disease undergoing ECPR at a pediatric cardiac intensive care unitindex ECPR events from 2010 to 2022
- Participants
- 78 children
- Exposure
- change in PaO2 and PaCO2 category during the first 6 h after ROC
- Outcome
- SHD with favorable neurological outcome (Pediatric Cerebral Performance Category score of 1, 2, 3 or no change from baseline)
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
- patients with smaller changes in PaO2 had higher odds of survival to hospital discharge (SHD) with favorable neurological outcome
- no association with PaCO2 category and SHD with favorable neurological outcome
- After controlling for potential confounders
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Secondary outcomes
Change in PaO2
- median [IQR] change in PaO2
- +127.5 [93, 184.7]
Overall SHD
- patients with smaller changes in PaO2 had higher odds of overall SHD
- patients with hypocarbia vs. normocarbia had higher odds of overall SHD
Neuroimaging injury
- Neuroimaging injury was associated with hypercarbia compared to hypocarbia
Original publication
The association between early arterial oxygen and carbon dioxide with neurologic outcomes after pediatric ECPR in children with cardiac disease. Resuscitation. Published 9 February 2026. doi:10.1016/j.resuscitation.2026.111007
Summarised from the published abstract; every number is checked against it