ECMO Therapy During The Tough Covid Times Helped To Alleviate Deaths

On 31st December 2019 coronavirus was first detected in Wuhan city of China. The advent of covid-19 had caused a significant amount of destruction to the world in almost every aspect such as the world economy, education, sports, business, mental health, etc. The covid -19 was the major reason for the tremendous increase in the world mortality rate by 7.678 %. Many people lost their lives and their loved ones in this devastating and intimidating pandemic.

ECMO Therapy During The Tough Covid Times Helped To Alleviate Deaths

Many scientists and doctors even did various types of experiments to come to a conclusion and find the cure for this virus but they got nothing. In the initial covid day people were said to quarantine themselves and maintain social distancing while going out but due to the contagiousness of the virus and lack of sincerity of the people led them to lose their lives and deal with many other mental health disorders due to the overwhelming loss they had been going through.

The medical and scientific centers all over the world did a tremendous amount of research on the virus and even tried to produce some vaccines in order to immunize the people to fight against the virus.

Vaccines such as the covexin, zydus Cadila, Gamaleya, etc were made and injected inside the people but they worked to a limited extent. It was reported that the people were still dying even after getting vaccinated and there has been no decrease in the infant mortality rates. 

In such conditions, the doctors urged the people to do extracorporeal membrane oxygenation ( ECMO ) therapy. Also known as extracorporeal life support is a procedure that provides extended cardiac and respiratory support to persons who lack oxygen to assist life. It was reported that people undergoing this therapy during the covid period were kept under observation and it was scrutinized that their chances of dying were less due to covid -19.

Due to the coronavirus, the breathing rate of people was observed and it was noticed that the virus being in the lungs played a major role in gas absorption from the body due to which the breathing got reduced and people lost their lives. The Chinese government said that the only method by which the country could control the deaths due to the virus was because of ECMO therapy. 

Many doctors and health agencies such as the WHO  even suggested that ECMO therapy is more effective than vaccines but it doesn’t mean that vaccines are of no use during these times. It was reported that during the peak time of the virus in June 2021 almost 1000 critically covid affected patients with low oxygen rates were kept under ventilators and strict surgeries but it was observed that the condition only worsened.

It was then the doctors first practiced ECMO therapy on these patients and it was observed that their death rate reduced to almost 50%. The study issued in the Lancet provided strong support to the use of ECMO therapy on the covid patients. Scientists also said that the patients recovered from ECMO therapy can be of great use as by doing a test on their blood samples new effective vaccines can be made and the people can be saved from reaching the well of death.

This therapy played a major role during the peak time of the delta virus which is a variant of the covid -19. People were indeed urged to get themselves treated from this therapy but it was upon them and their decision. Although strict rules were made and measures were taken people were required to once go through this therapy in order to keep themselves protected and safe.