Trends in utilization of mechanical circulatory support in patients hospitalized after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest

Objective: This study sought to examine the trends and predictors of mechanical circulatory support (MCS) use in patients hospitalized after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA).

Background: There is a paucity of data regarding MCS use in patients hospitalized after OHCA.

Methods: We conducted an observational analysis of MCS use in 960,428 patients hospitalized after OHCA between January 2008 and December 2014 in the Nationwide Inpatient Sample database. On multivariable analysis, we also assessed factors associated with MCS use and survival to discharge.

Results: Among the 960,428 patients, 51,863 (5.4%) had MCS utilized. Intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) was the most commonly used MCS after OHCA with frequency of 47,061 (4.9%), followed by extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) 3650 (0.4%), and percutaneous ventricular assist devices (PVAD) 3265 (0.3%). From 2008 to 2014, there was an increase in the utilization of MCS from 5% in 2008 to 5.7% in 2014 (P _trend < 0.001). There was a non-significant decline in the use of IABP from 4.9% to 4.7% (P _trend = 0.95), whereas PVAD use increased from 0.04% to 0.7% (P _trend < 0.001), and ECMO use increased from 0.1% to 0.7% (P _trend < 0.001) during the study period. Younger, male patients with myocardial infarction, higher co-morbid conditions, VT/VF as initial rhythm, and presentation to a large urban hospital were more likely to receive percutaneous MCS implantation. Survival to discharge was significantly higher in patients who were selected to receive MCS (56.9% vs. 43.1%, OR: 1.16, 95% CI: (1.11-1.21), p < 0.001).

Conclusions: There is a steady increase in the use of MCS in OHCA, especially PVAD and ECMO, despite lack of randomized clinical trial data supporting an improvement in outcomes. More definitive randomized studies are needed to assess accurately the optimal role of MCS in this patient population.