The Caribbean Registry of Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) From the University Hospital in Martinique

In the Caribbean region, access to advanced cardiac interventions faces difficulties owing to unequal distribution of health care resources, medical shortages and distance between health care centers in various islands. At the University Hospital of Martinique (UHM) in Fort de France, a mobile ECMO team is available 24h a day, 7 days a week, for cardiopulmonary mechanical support in the French Overseas Territories and neighboring islands. Implantation of veno-venous or veno-arterial (VV or VA) ECMO can be performed at the UHM or at remote hospitals. Some patients on VA-ECMO are transfered by airflight to the UHM and/or to French mainland whenever cardiac transplantation is indicated. Since 2010, the ECMO-UHM database is a prospective event-driven registry housed and updated by the HeartTeam (perfusionnists, emergency and ICU physicians, cardiac surgeons, cardiothoracic anesthesiologists, cardiologists).