Pretransplantation characteristics of study patients
| Characteristic | No. (%) of patients* | p value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All n = 135 | With VA-ECMO n = 66 | Without VA-ECMO n = 69 | ||
| Demographic characteristics | ||||
| Age, yr, mean ± SD | 50 ± 11 | 49 ± 12 | 52 ± 10 | 0.08 |
| Age > 60 yr | 36 (27) | 16 (24) | 20 (29) | 0.53 |
| Male sex | 39 (29) | 15 (28) | 24 (35) | 0.12 |
| Weight, kg, mean ± SD | 74 ± 14 | 74 ± 13 | 73 ± 15 | 0.66 |
| Medical history | ||||
| Diabetes with insulin | 13 (10) | 5 (8) | 8 (12) | 0.41 |
| Hypertension | 34 (25) | 15 (23) | 19 (27) | 0.52 |
| History of tobacco use | 43 (32) | 23 (35) | 20 (29) | 0.50 |
| Atrial fibrillation | 66 (49) | 33 (50) | 33 (49) | 0.86 |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (FEV1 < 70%) | 13 (10) | 6 (9) | 7 (10) | 0.81 |
| Previous stroke | 19 (14) | 10 (15) | 9 (13) | 0.75 |
| Chronic kidney failure (GFR < 60 mL/min in MDRD) | 44 (33) | 19 (29) | 25 (36) | 0.35 |
| Previous sternotomy | 43 (32) | 24 (36) | 19 (28) | 0.29 |
| Highly sensitized (Panel reactive antibody > 80%) | 17 (13) | 11 (17) | 6 (9) | 0.16 |
| Left ventricular assist device (HeartMate II) | 43 (32) | 23 (35) | 20 (29) | 0.50 |
| Cause of cardiomyopathy | ||||
| Ischemic | 44 (33) | 24 (36) | 20 (29) | 0.36 |
| Dilated nonischemic or idiopathic | 39 (29) | 17 (26) | 22 (32) | 0.43 |
| Hypertrophic | 21 (16) | 11 (17) | 10 (14) | 0.72 |
| Valvular | 14 (10) | 9 (14) | 5 (7) | 0.22 |
| Congenital | 9 (7) | 6 (9) | 3 (4) | 0.26 |
| Other | 23 (17) | 11 (17) | 12 (17) | 0.91 |
| Clinical status at the time of heart transplantation | ||||
| In ICU at the time of transplantation | 31 (23) | 17 (26) | 14 (20) | 0.53 |
| Waiting time for heart transplantation, d, mean ± SD | 174 ± 266 | 169 ± 219 | 179 ± 306 | 0.83 |
| Acute kidney failure (GFR < 40 mL/min in MDRD) | 29 (22) | 12 (18) | 17 (25) | 0.36 |
| Acute liver failure (bilirubin > 30 μmol/L) | 21 (16) | 11 (17) | 10 (15) | 0.53 |
| Low cardiac output syndrome | 52 (38) | 23 (34) | 29 (44) | 0.31 |
| Mechanical ventilation before heart transplantation | 4 (3) | 2 (3) | 2 (3) | 0.96 |
| Intra-aortic balloon pump | 18 (13) | 7 (11) | 11 (16) | 0.34 |
| Inotropic support (any catecholamine) | 36 (27) | 15 (23) | 21 (30) | 0.31 |
| Echocardiographic characteristic | ||||
| Left ventricular ejection fraction, %, mean ± SD | 10.5 ± 17 | 9.0 ± 18 | 11.9 ± 16.1 | 0.34 |
| Hemodynamic characteristics | ||||
| Cardiac index, L/min per m2, mean ± SD | 2.0 ± 0.5 | 2.1 ± 0.6 | 2.0 ± 0.6 | 0.61 |
| Pulmonary vascular resistance, Wood units, mean ± SD | 2.3 ± 1.2 | 2.4 ± 1.3 | 2.3 ± 1.2 | 0.86 |
| Systolic pulmonary arterial pressure, mm Hg, mean ± SD | 42 ± 14 | 43 ± 15 | 41 ± 14 | 0.60 |
| Mean pulmonary arterial pressure, mm Hg, mean ± SD | 29 ± 10 | 30 ± 11 | 28 ± 10 | 0.34 |
| Biologic characteristics | ||||
| Glomerular filtration rate, mL/min, mean ± SD | 68 ± 30 | 66 ± 26 | 60 ± 29 | 0.34 |
| Total bilirubin, mg/dL, mean ± SD | 17.6 ± 10.2 | 17.9 ± 10.3 | 17.9 ± 10 | 0.75 |
| AST, IU/L, mean ± SD | 45.5 ± 52.1 | 45.8 ± 49.9 | 45.2 ± 55.6 | 0.94 |
| ALT, IU/L, mean ± SD | 44.8 ± 40 | 52.4 ± 51.5 | 37.4 ± 23.9 | 0.03 |
| MELD-XI score, mean ± SD | 11.8 ± 4.8 | 11.7 ± 4.4 | 12.5 ± 5.9 | 0.66 |
ALT = alanine aminotransferase; AST = aspartate aminotransferase; FEV1 = forced expiratory volume in 1 s; GFR = glomerular filtration rate; ICU = intensive care unit; MDRD = Modification of Diet in Renal Disease study equation; MELD-XI = Model for End-stage Liver Disease score excluding INR; SD = standard deviation; VA-ECMO = venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation.
↵* Unless indicated otherwise.