Tsinghua University has made significant progress in the combination of medical and engineering research and development of severe ECMO project.

A few days ago, the extracorporeal membrane oxygenator jointly developed by the Department of Mechanical Engineering of Tsinghua University, the Institute of Precision Medicine and Beijing Tsinghua Chang Gung Memorial Hospital successfully produced a small batch of prototype and successfully completed animal pre-experiments.
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenator (ECMO,Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation) is a life support equipment that draws human venous blood out of the body for gas exchange into arterial blood, and then returns it to the body to realize oxygen supply. ECMO is the ultimate life-saving weapon in clinical rescue such as severe respiratory failure, chronic obstructive pneumonia, acute cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and thoracic trauma first aid. In the treatment of severe patients with SARS and new crown pneumonia, it has become the last line of defense for the "gate of life and death. Domestic in the core membrane materials, blood circulation overall design, device manufacturing and other links are still in the blank.
In April 2019, with the strong support and promotion of Academician Luo Jianbin, Honorary Dean of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Tianjin High-end Equipment Research Institute of Tsinghua University, and Academician Dong Jiahong of Clinical Medical College, the medical-engineering combination ECMO research team was launched. In June 2019, the Artificial Heart and Lung Center of Tsinghua University Precision Medical Research Institute was approved to be established. The center is co-directed by Zhang Xiangjun, a researcher in the Department of Machinery and vice president of Tianjin High-end Equipment Research Institute of Tsinghua University, and Xu Yuan, director of Beijing Tsinghua Chang Gung Memorial Hospital. The hospital, Southeast University Affiliated Zhongda Hospital and other units are committed to research on membrane lung mechanism, preparation and processing of core membrane materials, optimization of blood oxygenation interface, and integrated design. The outbreak of the new coronary pneumonia epidemic in early 2020 accelerated the progress of project research and development, and with the strong support of the national ministries and Tsinghua University's engineering unveiling project, the Tsinghua ECMO research project entered the green emergency channel of the State Drug Administration.
Starting in 2022, the project team successfully realized the small batch trial production of ECMO prototype and carbon dioxide removal machine. With the support of clinical teams such as Zhang Ping, vice president of Beijing Tsinghua Chang Gung Hospital and Xue Yajun, the project team carried out a number of animal pre-experiments. In the experiment, small-tailed Han sheep with large weight were used as the test object. Under the condition of blood flow test from small flow to large flow, the continuous transfer of membrane lung was achieved successfully by animal modeling. Changes in animal signs and blood indicators, membrane lung equipment performance, such as oxygenation efficiency, carbon dioxide removal efficiency, transmembrane pressure difference and other indicators have achieved the expected results, laying a solid foundation for the subsequent promotion of ECMO products.
Through interdisciplinary research on membrane materials, blood microfluidics and mass transfer, and surface interface technology, the team has made independent innovations in ECMO core mechanism and design, key materials and coating technology, with unique technical characteristics and independent patent layout. The research progress is expected to become a key milestone for Tsinghua University to give full play to the advantages of medical and industrial integration to achieve independent innovation and breakthrough of high-end medical equipment in China.




 

In April 2019, the medical labor combined with artificial lung project team was launched. 

January 2022, ECMO team successfully completed
The first animal experiment

 

Contributor: Wang Xiaoying
Editor: Yang Fan
Reviewed by: ZHAO Yue


 

Reprinted | Department of Mechanical Engineering, Tsinghua University