Impact of ECPELLA support on 1-year outcomes and myocardial damage in patients with acute myocardial infarction and refractory cardiogenic shock: A single-center retrospective observational study

Background: Venoarterial-extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO) is a vital mechanical circulatory support for treating patients with refractory cardiogenic shock (CS). VA-ECMO can improve end-organ perfusion; however, it increases left ventricular (LV) afterload, resulting in further myocardial damage. ECPELLA, a combination of VA-ECMO and Impella (Abiomed Inc., Danvers, MA, USA) treatments, is an emerging modality to optimize end-organ perfusion and LV unloading. The impact of ECPELLA in refractory CS has not been established. We aimed to investigate the effects of ECPELLA on acute-phase LV damage and outcomes in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and refractory CS and compare them with those of VA-ECMO with an intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP).

Methods: This single-center retrospective observational study included 90 consecutive patients with AMI and refractory CS who received VA-ECMO between January 2012 and December 2022. Of these, 44 and 46 received ECPELLA and VA-ECMO with IABP, respectively. We assessed the serum creatine kinase myocardial band (CK-MB) levels and 1-year mortality.

Results: No significant differences were observed in the baseline characteristics and time from onset to reperfusion between the two groups. Compared with VA-ECMO with IABP, ECPELLA produced lower peak CK-MB levels (265 IU/L vs. 500 IU/L, p = 0.016) and a smaller area under the curve of the time course in the first 3 days (274 IU/L vs. 534 IU/L × d, p = 0.025). ECPELLA was associated with significantly lower 1-year mortality (64 % vs 91 %; p = 0.001). Cox proportional hazards analysis revealed that ECPELLA was inversely and independently associated with 1-year mortality (hazard ratio: 0.38, 95 % confidence interval: 0.23-0.64; p < 0.001).

Conclusions: Our findings suggest that ECPELLA may offer myocardial protection and be associated with improved 1-year mortality in patients with AMI and refractory CS. Further prospective studies are needed to confirm these observations and better understand the potential benefits of ECPELLA in this population.