Jayalalithaa health update: What does ‘being put on ECMO’ mean?
On Sunday (December 4), Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa was put on assisted breathing after suffering a cardiac arrest in the evening, at Chennai’s Apollo Hospitals. The 68-year-old had been shifted back to the Intensive Care Unit after a fortnight of being moved to a private room, and put on Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO), a heart assist device that helps cardiac and respiratory functions. LIVE UPDATES ALSO READ | Jayalalithaa: Why Amma is important to Tamil Nadu For those unaware of what the ECMO device does, it is basically an advanced machine used as a rescue method when a patient does not respond to conventional CPR or Cardiopulmonary resuscitation. It works by draining blood from a vein, adding oxygen through the oxygenator machine and removing the carbon dioxide. It also warms up the blood, returning it to the artery and, in some cases, pumps the blood through the body. This enables the blood to bypass the heart and lungs. In the case of Jayalalithaa, the hospital said, “She is on extracorporeal membrane heart assist device and is being treated by a team of expert doctors and critical care specialists. Dr Richard Beale from London has also been consulted and he has concurred with the line of treatment by our cardiologists & pulmonologists.” The survival rates after being put on ECMO varies, though some reports say that the chances of survival do improve. ECMO is opted for when it can be rapidly implemented and where the doctors believe that the suspected cause of the cardiac arrest is potentially reversible. RELATED | Jayalalithaa in hospital: A timeline of events In the meanwhile, Amma supporters have thronged the hospital since Sunday night, and Tamil Nadu has been put on high alert. As word spread and supporters started gathering, police stepped up deployment in and around Greams Road where the hospital is located. On social media, people have been wishing for the speedy recovery of the veteran politician whose stature in the state’s political scenario is unrivalled.
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