Though much has been surveyed and written about the equipment aspects of extracorporeal life support (ECLS) in the past 10 years, there is value in reviewing the use and nonuse of multiple safety devices and techniques. Minimally equipped ECLS circuits for adult and pediatric bridge to decision during cardiac and respiratory failure are rapidly gaining popularity to maintain simplicity and portability. ECLS circuits employed for long-term therapy are outfitted differently and should include more safety devices. The purpose of this review is to compare and contrast the spectrum of minimally equipped ECLS circuits to circuits with maximum flexibility and safety device protection. Due to the lack of high-level, well-controlled scientific studies regarding ECLS equipment and safety devices, this study reviews the basis for how we use ECLS circuits and devices in our institution to provide safe patient support.