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Study identifier: NCT06560164 Synced from ClinicalTrials.gov · July 29, 2026
● Recruiting

Restrictive Versus Liberal Thresholds for RBC Transfusion in ECMO

Condition: Transfusion · Red Blood Cell · Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation  ·  Sponsor: Academisch Medisch Centrum - Universiteit van Amsterdam (AMC-UvA)

PhaseNA
Planned participants526
Who can joinAll sexes, 18 Years to no upper limit
Healthy volunteersNo

About this study

Rationale: In patients supported with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), transfusion of red blood cells (RBC) is very common. This is possibly due to the application of liberal thresholds and the lack of evidence-based guidelines. Although RBC transfusion can be lifesaving, it is also a risk-bearing intervention with substantial risk for morbidity and mortality in this critically ill population. Also, with increasing scarcity, RBC transfusions are becoming more expensive. Furthermore, in the past decades it has been shown in several critically ill patient populations - not on ECMO - that maintaining a restrictive hemoglobin (Hb) threshold for RBC transfusion is non-inferior, including in cardiothoracic surgery, acute myocardial infarction and septic shock. Therefore, the investigators hypothesize that a restrictive transfusion threshold for RBC is safe to apply in patients on ECMO in comparison with a liberal transfusion threshold. Objective: The primary objective of this trial is to study in a prospective randomized comparison whether a restrictive RBC transfusions strategy is non-inferior compared to a liberal strategy in patients on ECMO with respect to 90-day mortality. Study design: Prospective multi-center randomized controlled non-inferiority trial. Study population: Patients, 18 years or older, receiving ECMO. Intervention: Restrictive RBC transfusion threshold: in case the Hb transfusion trigger of 7.0 g/dL (4.3 mmol/L) is reached, 1 RBC unit at a time w…

This description comes directly from the study's public registry record.

Talk to the study team

Alexander P.J. Vlaar, PhD  ·  020 566 9111  ·  a.p.vlaar@amsterdamumc.nl

Stefan F. van Wonderen, MD  ·  020 566 9111  ·  s.vanwonderen@amsterdamumc.nl

Always discuss trial participation with your own doctor first.

Locations (12)

Hôpital Erasme BrusselsBrussels, Brussels Capital, BelgiumRecruiting
KU Leuven, medical ICLeuven, Flemish Brabant, BelgiumRecruiting
KU Leuven, surgical ICLeuven, Flemish Brabant, BelgiumRecruiting
CHU CharleroiCharleroi, Hainaut, BelgiumRecruiting
Medisch Spectrum Twente (MST)Enschede, Drenthe, NetherlandsRecruiting
Maastricht Universitair Medisch Centrum+ (MUMC+)Maastricht, Limburg, NetherlandsRecruiting
Amsterdam UMC, location AMCAmsterdam, North Holland, NetherlandsRecruiting
Universitair Medisch Centrum Groningen (UMCG)Groningen, Provincie Groningen, NetherlandsRecruiting
Leids Universitair Medisch Centrum (LUMC)Leiden, South Holland, NetherlandsNot Yet Recruiting
Erasmus MCRotterdam, South Holland, NetherlandsNot Yet Recruiting
St. Antonius ZiekenhuisNieuwegein, Utrecht, NetherlandsRecruiting
Karolinska Universtiy HospitalStockholm, Stockholm County, SwedenNot Yet Recruiting

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Source record: clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06560164