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Medication poisoning, resulting from the ingestion of cardiotoxic drugs, presents a significant health issue. The mortality rate remains high for patients with myocardial dysfunction refractory to conventional treatments. Venoarterial Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (V-A ECMO) provides temporary support, potentially enhancing patient outcomes. This study aims to assess the efficacy of V-A ECMO in treating cardiovascular failure induced by cardiovascular medication poisoning. We utilized inpatient data from all hospitalisations in Germany from 2007 to 2022 due to cardiovascular medication poisoning treated with V-A ECMO. Patient characteristics, comorbidities, complications and application of ECMO were described descriptively and analysed for statistical significance between survivors and non-survivors. Overall, 49 patients received V-A ECMO for cardiovascular medication poisoning, with a survival rate of 63.6%. The most ingested medications were calcium-channel blockers (38.8%) and beta-adrenoceptor antagonists (34.7%). Half of non-survivors received in-hospital CPR, compared to 12.9% of survivors. Early ECMO implantation (within 24 h of admission) was common (83.7%) but did not significantly impact survival rates. A substantial number of patients presented with multiple substances ingested. V-A ECMO represents a viable option for patients experiencing cardiac failure due to medication poisoning. A structured implementation of V-A ECMO for cardiovascular medication poisoning could lead to higher survival rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The prevalence of anemia is high, especially in obstetrics. There is large evidence, that anemia during pregnancy is associated with increased maternal morbidity and mortality. Anemia and peripartum hemorrhage remain the main causes for transfusion of red blood cells (RBC). Patient Blood Management (PBM) reduces the need for RBC transfusion significantly. The present study retrospectively analyzed the impact and prevalence of anemia and RBC transfusion on pregnant women., Materials and Methods: Data were retrieved from the German Statistical Office on pregnant women who delivered in hospital between January 1 st 2011 and December 31 st 2020. The prevalence of anemia, peripartum hemorrhage, comorbidities, administration of blood products and complications were analyzed., Results: A total of 6,356,046 pregnant women were analyzed of whom 78,257 (1.23%) received RBC transfusion (RBC transfusion group) and 6,277,789 (98.77%) did not receive RBC transfusion (non-RBC transfusion group). In all women analyzed anemia rate was 23.74%. The rates of anemia during pregnancy (70.39 vs 23.15%; p<0.0001), postpartum hemorrhage (41.42 vs 4.35%; p<0.0001), hospital length of stay (127.5 vs 87.08 hours; p<0.0001) and single complications were higher in women with RBC transfusion compared to women without RBC transfusion., Discussion: The prevalence of anemia and the increased risk for RBC transfusion show that there is great potential for effective implementation of PBM in obstetrics. The treatment of anemia during pregnancy and reduction of RBC transfusions will decrease maternal morbidity and mortality.