Full-Course ECMO Strategy for Moderate-to-Severe ARDS

Plain-language summary

China faces major challenges in the ECMO management of patients with moderate-to-severe ARDS, including substantial heterogeneity in clinical practice, low weaning success rates, and high complication rates. A key underlying reason is the lack of a standardized full-course management pathway that is applicable to real-world clinical practice in China. This study focuses on the construction and evidence-based evaluation of a precision full-course ECMO management pathway for patients with moderate-to-severe ARDS, aiming to address fragmented care processes and delayed quality improvement. The study includes three main components. First, multidisciplinary consensus and evidence-based findings will be integrated to develop a standardized management pathway covering the full chain of assessment, initiation, maintenance, weaning, and rehabilitation. Second, a nationwide multicenter real-world study with a before-and-after design will be conducted to systematically evaluate the clinical effectiveness of this pathway in reducing mortality and complications and improving patient outcomes. Third, a closed-loop dynamic optimization system based on "pathway-data-feedback-improvement" will be established. With the support of an intelligent data platform and multidisciplinary review mechanisms, the pathway will be continuously updated and refined. Through this study, a reproducible, traceable, and evaluable full-course ECMO management strategy is expected to be established. The study will also build a national collaborative research network and support the development of living clinical guidance, promoting the transition of ECMO care in China from experience-based practice toward standardized, homogeneous, and intelligent management, and providing a key technical framework and practical model for improving critical care.

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