Although extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR) is increasingly utilized in the pediatric critical care environment, our understanding regarding pediatric candidacy for ECPR remains unknown.

Our objective is to explore current practice and indications for pediatric ECPR. Scenario-based, self-administered, online survey, evaluating clinical determinants that may impact pediatric ECPR initiation with respect to four scenarios: postoperative cardiac surgery, cardiac failure secondary to myocarditis, septic shock, and chronic respiratory failure in a former preterm child.

Responders are pediatric critical care physicians from four societies.

249 physicians, mostly from North America, answered the survey.

In cardiac scenarios, 40% of the responders would initiate ECPR, irrespective of CPR duration, compared with less than 20% in noncardiac scenarios.

Nearly 33% of responders would consider ECPR if CPR duration was less than 60 minutes in noncardiac scenarios.

Factors strongly decreasing the likelihood to initiate ECPR were out-of-hospital unwitnessed cardiac arrest and blood pH <6.60.

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