The Da Nang Hospital said on Wednesday that it had promptly saved the life of a woman giving birth with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support.

Previously, a 26-year-old pregnant woman, identified as N.K.T, residing in Hoa Khuong Commune, Hoa Vang District, Da Nang, had been rushed into the hospital in a very critical conditions with peripartum cardiomyopathy and low blood pressure.

Doctors from the Da Nang Hospital and the municipal Maternity and Paediatrics Hospital held an urgent consultation to determine the most appropriate treatment for the pregnant patient.

Accordingly, the pregnant woman was assigned to have a cesarean section at the Da Nang Maternity and Paediatrics Hospital. After a C-section, the baby was put under the medical monitoring at the Maternity and Paediatrics Hospital, whilst the mother was transferred to the Da Nang Hospital for emergency medical treatment. At that time, she suffered from heart failure, and low blood pressure, and was on mechanical ventilation.

Doctors of the Intensive Care and Anti-Poison Department of the Da Nang Hospital had to use Venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO) to save the life of the patient. During the treatment, the patient's heart almost stopped beating.

The patient underwent V-A ECMO support for 8 days. During that time, the patient's life completely depended on the operation of the VA ECMO machine and the accompanying active resuscitation methods such as dialysis and artificial ventilation.

Doctor Nguyen Tan Hung, Deputy Head of the Intensive Care and Anti-Poison Department, said that this was a very critical case. Therefore, during that time, the patient must be monitored closely for any signs of hemodynamic instability, arterial blood gas analysis to confirm the adequacy of oxygenation and ventilation, and the patient’s ventilator settings and respiratory mechanics must be carefully assessed as well.

“With the assessment of the patient's condition capable of weaning from mechanical ventilation, although the patient's heart function was still poor and almost completely dependent on the ECMO machine, we decided to let her breath on her own" added Dr. Hung.

On the 8^th day of VA ECMO intervention, the patient's heart began to beat slowly and improved day by day. In the following days, the patient successfully weaned from VA ECMO.

After more than 10 days of intensive treatment, the patient has recovered and has been discharged from the hospital.

Reporting by PHAN CHUNG - Translating by M.DUNG