The most universally agreed contraindications to ECMO support are the absence of a reversible etiology, short life expectancy due to malignancy or another terminal disease, and ongoing bleeding. Other increasingly debated contraindications include advanced age, obesity, sepsis, end-stage renal disease, end-stage hepatic disease, and coagulopathy.

References

• ELSO Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Extracorporeal Life Support Extracorporeal Life Support Organization, Version 1.4. Accessed May 14, 2023. www.elso.org
• Mazzeffi MA, Rao VK, Del Rio JM, et al. Intraoperative management of adult patients on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation: an expert consensus statement from the society of cardiovascular anesthesiologists—part I, technical aspects of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. J Cardiothorac Vasc Anesth. 2021;35:3496-3512.