Possible New Treatment Method For H1N1 Swine Flu

The BBC news service in the UK, has broadcast this morning, that the use of ECMO (extra corporeal membrane oxygenation) can relieve the symptoms of Swine Flu, and aid the recovery of the sufferer, even in the most serious of cases.

Link to Source Article

"A pregnant Scottish woman who had to be flown to Sweden for life-saving treatment for swine flu has spoken for the first time of her ordeal."

"After her condition rapidly deteriorated and she slipped into a coma, doctors decided she required the bypass procedure known as extra corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). "

"She was hooked up to the ECMO machine for almost two weeks. The machine takes over the lung function and adds oxygen to the blood, allowing the lungs to recover and medication to treat infection to take hold "

This story has also now been picked up by NY Times.

Link to NYTimes Article

"In a study with implications for swine flu treatment, British researchers have found that some patients with severe breathing problems do better if their blood is run through a heart-lung machine than if they are attached to a conventional ventilator.
If swine flu hospitalizations increase rapidly as the winter gets colder, pressure could rise to put the sickest patients on such machines, which oxygenate the blood without forcing air into the lungs, giving lung tissue the chance to rest and heal."

It looks like this could be a possible treatment for some of the more serious cases?