Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO)

The University Hospital of South Manchester (UHSM) is an ECMO centre which treats adults across the North West, North of England and the North East for potentially severe respiratory failure.

UHSM is registered with the Extra Corporeal Life Support Organisation (ELSO) and collaborates with a number of other centres across the UK as part of a national clinical network. These centres have some of the world's most experienced hospitals in using ECMO. 

ECMO is used when a patient has a serious condition which prevents the lungs or heart from working normally. An ECMO machine is very similar to the heart and lung machine used during open-heart surgery. It is a supportive measure that uses an artificial lung (the membrane) to oxygenate the blood outside the body (extracorporeal).   

There are five centres in the UK. They are:

University Hospital of South Manchester NHS FT

Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital NHS FT

Papworth Hospital NHS FT

Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS FT

University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust

Each of the centres cover a defined geographical area (see picture to the right) and a number of established critical care networks that exist. 

This ensures that any patient that requires critical care services are able to access them.