Interest of Levosimendan in Reducing Weaning Failures of ExtraCorporeal Life Support - ECLS
Status:
Recruiting
Trial end date:
2024-02-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Extracorporeal life support (ECLS) is a circulatory cardio supplementation technique; it
therefore makes it possible to compensate for a defective cardiac or cardio-respiratory
function. ECLS nevertheless remains a temporary assistance technique pending a potential
recovery of cardiac function, or it can be used to direct patients towards a heart transplant
or long-term circulatory assistance (Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) or Total Heart).
In patients with complete or partial recovery of cardiac and circulatory function, ECLS
withdrawal may be considered. Withdrawal from ECLS remains a delicate phase and the risk of
failure is high. The mechanism of action of levosimendan, a drug that increases the
contractility of the heart, suggests that it would improve the heart-vessel connection and
reduce the rate of ECLS withdrawal failure. The effect of levosimendan is maximal 24 to 48
hours after the end of the infusion and has a prolonged period of action.
The objective is to evaluate the efficacy of levosimendan administration (0.2 µg/kg/min over
24 hours) - versus placebo - prior to ECLS removal on the rate of withdrawal failure in
patients under ECLS.