Utilization of Venovenous Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation as Bridge to Heart Transplantation in a Child With Congenital Heart Defect

Children with end-stage heart failure, waiting for heart transplantation, have limited bridging options. Unconventional strategies are often utilized in children with congenital heart disease. We report the case of a 12-year-old boy with Ebstein anomaly whose clinical course was complicated by valve thrombosis, right ventricular dysfunction, and intracranial bleed. Venovenous extracorporeal mechanical oxygenation was successfully used as bridge to transplantation, where other strategies were too precarious. Judicious use of venovenous extracorporeal mechanical oxygenation may be used as a bridge to cardiac transplantation in selected patients.