Nonintubated extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) has been increasingly utilized for patients with severe respiratory failure. Since data on its use as a bridge to lung transplant remain limited, we evaluated its use in a national cohort.

Adult lung-only transplant recipients bridged with ECMO May 4, 2005 to March 8, 2023 in the United Network for Organ Sharing database were categorized by use of ECMO and mechanical ventilation (MV) at transplant (ECMO+MV vs ECMO-only). We compared post-transplant intubation and ECMO at 72 hours, length of stay, and survival.

The 1,599 transplants identified included 902 (56.4%) bridged with ECMO+MV and 697 (43.6%) bridged with ECMO-only. ECMO-only recipients had higher median age (52 vs 49 years, p < 0.001), shorter ischemic times (5.7 vs 6.0 hours, p = 0.003), and similar lung allocation scores (89.5 vs 89.6, p = 0.11). ECMO-only recipients had lower likelihood of intubation at 72 hours (56.5% vs 77.5%; adjusted odds ratio 0.33 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.25, 0.42], p < 0.001) and shorter lengths of stay (28 vs 35 days; coefficient −0.19 [95% CI: −0.27, −0.11], p < 0.001). ECMO-only recipients had higher 90-day survival (92.1% vs 89.1%; adjusted hazards ratio (aHR) 0.69 [95% CI: 0.48, 0.99], p = 0.04) but similar 1-year (83.1% vs 81.5%; aHR 0.87 [95% CI: 0.67, 1.12], p = 0.27) and 5-year (54.6% vs 54.7%; aHR 0.98 [95% CI: 0.82, 1.17], p = 0.83) survival.

Nonintubated ECMO bridge to lung transplant was associated with improved perioperative outcomes and short-term survival and should be considered for candidates requiring ECMO.