Kauvery Hospital, Vadapalani, in Chennai has launched a suite of specialised Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) services to support patients with complex clinical needs as part of a comprehensive critical care approach that considers the heart, lungs and other organs collectively.

According to a release, the hospital’s Kauvery Centre for ECMO and Advanced Life Support offers a range of specialised services, including VV-ECMO for severe respiratory failure, VA-ECMO for cardiac failure, V-AV ECMO (Hybrid ECMO) for combined heart and lung failure, awake ECMO, and ECMO-supported road and air transfers. The programme is led by K. Madhan Kumar, Director – ECMO and VAD, and Senior Consultant – Cardiothoracic and Transplant Surgeon at Kauvery Hospital, Vadapalani, who currently serves as president of the ECMO Society of India.

According to the release, Dr. Kumar said, “When severe heart or lung failure does not respond to conventional treatment, ECMO provides temporary life support, allowing doctors to treat the underlying condition and assess the potential for recovery. Managing such patients often involves addressing complications affecting other organs, requiring careful monitoring and timely clinical decisions.”

Aravindan Selvaraj, Co-founder and Executive Director of Kauvery Group of Hospitals, said, “Advanced critical care depends on the strength of the team behind it. The ability to manage complex conditions comes from bringing together the right specialists, technology and clinical judgement, particularly when a patient’s needs change rapidly.”