Patients with acute COVID-19-related respiratory failure are more likely to survive when put on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation than mechanical ventilation alone, a new study shows.

The intervention reduces risk of death in these patients by 7% and is most effective in the under-65s and those with severe hypoxaemia, according to the Canadian-led research.

In contrast, those who were mechanically ventilated for seven days before cannulation or ventilated at “potentially injurious intensities” with a driving pressure above 15cmH₂O, were less likely to benefit from extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), the authors say.

“Our study expands the current knowledge on clinical criteria that might be considered before initiating ECMO and on factors influencing the effectiveness of such treatment in patients with COVID-19,” the team wrote in the BMJ.