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Although longer ECMO run times for patients with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) have been associated with worse outcomes, a large study has not been conducted to examine the risk factors for long ECMO runs.

The Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) Registry from 2000 to 2015 was used to identify predictors of long ECMO runs in CDH patients. A long run was any duration of ≥ 14 days. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to examine the association between demographics, pre-ECMO blood gas/ventilator settings, comorbid conditions, and therapies on long ECMO runs.

There were 4730 CDH-infants examined. The largest association with long ECMO runs was on-ECMO repair (OR: 3.72, 95% CI: 3.013–4.602, p < 0.001) and the use of THAM (OR: 1.463, 95% CI: 1.062–2.016, p = 0.02). Each drop in pH quartile was associated with an …