Clinical, inflammatory and microbiological characteristics on day of admission to hospital and during intensive care unit (ICU) stay
| ECMO (n=22) | MV only (n=54) | p-value | |
| Demographics | |||
| Patients n | 22 | 54 | |
| Age years | 30±14 | 43±15 | 0.002 |
| Females | 16/22 (72.7%) | 19/54 (35.2%) | 0.003 |
| Ex- or current smokers | 12/22 (54.5%) | 30/54 (55.6%) | 0.937 |
| Atopic | 12/22 (55%) | 20/54 (37%) | 0.161 |
| Treatment on admission | |||
| No treatment | 3/22 (17.6%) | 2/54 (3.9%) | NA |
| Short-acting β-agonist only | 2/22 (11.8%) | 8/54 (15.7%) | NA |
| Low-dose ICS | 2/22 (11.8%) | 15/54 (29.4%) | NA |
| Low-dose ICS/LABA | 6/22 (35.3%) | 6/54 (11.8%) | NA |
| Medium-dose ICS/LABA | 3/22 (17.6%) | 14/54 (27.5%) | NA |
| High-dose ICS/LABA | 1/22 (5.9%) | 6/54 (11.8%) | NA |
| Maintenance prednisolone or biologic therapies | 0/22 (0.0%) | 0/54 (0.0%) | NA |
| Laboratory results | |||
| Total white cell count 109 L−1 | 15.5±6.5 | 12.1±4.4 | 0.013 |
| Blood eosinophil count 109 L−1 | 0.5±1.0 | 0.5±1.0 | 0.822 |
| Blood neutrophil count 109 L−1 | 10.6±3.6 | 8.2±4.0 | 0.083 |
| C-reactive protein mg·L−1 | 48.4±70.9 | 49.1±92.3 | 0.976 |
| Serum total immunoglobulin E kU·L−1 | 1178±1714 (n=13) | 1089±1988 (n=16) | 0.899 |
| Duration of mechanical ventilation days | 12.6±12.6 | 5.2±8.4 | 0.005 |
| Duration of ECMO days | 6.0±1.9 | NA | NA |
| ICU length of stay days | 15.0±10.7 (n=20) | 5.4±7.1 (n=54) | <0.001 |
| Hospital length of stay days | 22.1±17.2 (n=22) | 12.8±16.6 (n=54) | 0.033 |
| Pre-ECMO/MV | |||
| pH | 7.12±0.2 (n=19) | 7.27±0.1 (n=53) | <0.001 |
| PO2 kPa | 14±6.0 (n=17) | 15.9±8.5 (n=53) | 0.414 |
| PCO2 kPa | 12.8±4.1 (n=18) | 7.26±2.1 (n=53) | <0.001 |
| Lactate mmol·L−1 | 1.1±0.5 (n=15) | 2.7±1.7 (n=53) | 0.001 |
| Positive respiratory virus isolate | 12/22 (54.5%) | 8/29 (27.6%) | 0.052 |
| Influenza A | 3/22 (13.6%) | 4/29 (13.8%) | 0.987 |
| Adenovirus# | 2/22 (9.1%) | 0/29 (0.0%) | 0.098 |
| Rhinovirus# | 6/22 (27.3%) | 2/29 (6.9%) | 0.048 |
| Coronavirus | 1/22 (4.5%) | 1/29 (3.4%) | 0.842 |
| RSV | 0/22 (0.0%) | 1/29 (3.4%) | 0.379 |
| Parainfluenza | 1/22 (4.5%) | 0/29 (0.0%) | 0.246 |
| Positive bacterial isolate | 7/22 (31.8%) | 11/29 (37.9%) | 0.660 |
| Staphylococcus aureus | 3/22 (13.6%) | 2/29 (6.9%) | 0.641 |
| Streptococcus pneumoniae | 0/22 (0.0%) | 3/29 (10.3%) | 0.249 |
| Haemophilus influenzae | 0/22 (0.0%) | 3/29 (10.3%) | 0.249 |
| Pseudomonas aeruginosa | 0/22 (0.0%) | 2/29 (6.9%) | 0.499 |
| Other¶ | 4/22 (18.1%) | 1/29 (3.4%) | 0.152 |
| Positive fungal isolates | 8/22 (36.4%) | 3/29 (10.3%) | 0.025 |
| Candida albicans | 7/22 (31.8%) | 3/29 (10.3%) | 0.079 |
| Aspergillus fumigatus# | 2/22 (9.1%) | 0/29 (0.0%) | 0.181 |
Data are presented as mean±sd or n/N (%) unless otherwise stated. ECMO: extracorporeal membrane oxygenation; MV: mechanical ventilation; ICS: inhaled corticosteroid; LABA: long-acting β-agonist; PO2: oxygen tension; PCO2: carbon dioxide tension; RSV: respiratory syncytial virus; NA: not applicable. #: includes samples with more than one isolate; ¶: Enterobacteriaceae, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia or Veillonella species.