Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41960097›Full record

ArticleJTCVS open2026

Subclavian or axillary artery cannulation for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation: A systematic review.

Jan Coveliers, Paolo Meani, Mariusz Kowalewski, Eliza Huizinga, Karthik Gutta, Giulia Piccirillo, Emanuele Gasparotti, Emanuele Vignali, Marilena Mazzoli, Wouter Huberts and 14 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in JTCVS open, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

24 authors.

Jan CoveliersCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Paolo MeaniCardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht (CARIM), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Mariusz KowalewskiDepartment of Cardiac Surgery, Central Clinical Hospital of the Ministry of Interior, Centre of Postgraduate Medical Education, Warsaw, Poland.
Eliza HuizingaCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Karthik GuttaCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Giulia PiccirilloCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Emanuele GasparottiBioCardioLab, Bioengineering Unit, Fondazione Monasterio, Massa, Italy.
Emanuele VignaliBioCardioLab, Bioengineering Unit, Fondazione Monasterio, Massa, Italy.
Marilena MazzoliBioCardioLab, Bioengineering Unit, Fondazione Monasterio, Massa, Italy.
Wouter HubertsDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
Hamed MoradiDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
Michele Di MauroCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Robert J HoltackersCardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht (CARIM), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Monique de JongCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Sandro GelsominoCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Domenico PaparellaCardiac Surgery Unit, University of Foggia, Italy.
Simona CeliBioCardioLab, Bioengineering Unit, Fondazione Monasterio, Massa, Italy.
Dorela HaxhiademiAnesthesia and Intensive Care Unit, Fondazione Monasterio, Massa, Italy.
Erik KörverCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Arne DoddemaCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Michal J KawczynskiCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Samuel HeutsCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Elham BidarCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Roberto LorussoCardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht, The Netherlands.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Subclavian or axillary artery cannulation for venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO) provides a valuable alternative to femoral access; however, a comprehensive overview of such an approach in this setting is lacking. This review examined types of access, clinical complications, and outcomes of subclavian/axillary cannulation, emphasizing the pros and cons of this VA-ECMO approach as well as areas for further investigation. Methods: A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science for articles published between January 2000 and December 2024. Studies were included that (1) reported on axillary or subclavian artery cannulation in VA-ECMO, (2) involved adult patients, and (3) provided in-hospital outcomes. Exclusion criteria were case reports with fewer than 5 patients and non-English language articles. Data on patient demographics, indications, cannulation techniques, complications, and in-hospital survival were collected. Results: Seventeen studies with a total of 2030 patients were selected and analyzed. Subclavian or axillary cannulation was predominantly right-sided (99%) and involved graft interposition in 81% of cases. Indications for VA-ECMO with this arterial access included acute myocardial infarction shock (11%-42%), acute decompensation with chronic heart failure (4.9%-52%), postcardiotomy shock (7%-75.2%), acute myocarditis (4%- 7.7%) and refractory respiratory distress (5%-50%). Complications included limb ischemia (1.2%-9.6%), stroke (5.2%-18.8%) and bleeding events (4%-37.5%, often at the graft site). Left ventricular (LV) unloading strategies were used in 5.2% to 15.0% of cases but were not documented in almost 60% of the studies. In-hospital and 1-year survival rates ranged from 82.7% to 55% and from 50.6% to 25.7%, respectively. Conclusions: VA-ECMO with axillary or subclavian artery access can be a safe and effective configuration, particularly for patients with contraindications or need of change of femoral cannulation. However, conflicting data on stroke risk, hemodynamic effects on LV ejection, the need for LV unloading (particularly with the right-sided approach), and both short- and long-term survival rates warrant further investigation.

Indexed as

axillary arterycannulationECMOextracorporeal membrane oxygenationsubclavian arteryveno-arterial ECMO

Identifiers

PMID41960097
PMCPMC13059825

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.