Pharmacy Student Presents Research on the Effects of ECMO-Associated Sedative Clearance at Critical Care Congress

At the recent Society of Critical Care Medicine World Congress in Phoenix, AZ, Joshua Etheridge, PharmD 2017, presented the results of a research collaboration with Tufts Medical Center and Columbia NewYork Presbyterian Medical Center that characterized the incidence, risk and outcomes associated with ECMO-associated sedative clearance. Most of Joshua’s research was completed during a 4-month research cooperative experience that he completed in the ICUs at Tufts Medical Center under the direction of Professor John Devlin.
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is increasingly being applied to support patients who are admitted to the ICU with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).   While persistent deep sedation with medications like midazolam, propofol and fentanyl is an important goal of therapy during EMCO management, the EMCO circuit will bind to these medications thus increasing the risk for patient wakefulness and an increase in safety concerns such as device removal. 

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