ECMO pumps blood out of the body, oxygenates it and returns it to the body

Re:ECMO pumps blood out of the body, oxygenates it and retur... by mullingitover on Thursday June 20, 2019 @05:46PM (#20237716)

Tens of thousands of people are in this very situation right now just in the US. They're on ventilators, but the scenario is the same.

Last summer a friend of mine had an accident while swimming at the beach, broke his neck, and spent six months on a a machine before he had a diaphragm pacemaker surgically installed. I visited him at a long-term care facility and there was a whole ward of people on ventilators.

I'm extremely grateful for the ability to breathe unassisted.

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Re:ECMO pumps blood out of the body, oxygenates it and retur... by xwdv on Friday June 21, 2019 @03:03PM (#20245402)

But how do they cope? I can't imagine sitting in a bed perfectly fine typing this post while hooked up to a machine keeping me alive and then doctors walking in and saying "It's time to discuss your end of life options."

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