Burns complicating into Klebsiella pneumoniae pneumonia requiring ECMO therapy and with favourable outcome

Abstract

Burn injuries are common and carry high morbidity and mortality. Up to 40% of burn patients develop acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) due to inhalational injury or infective pneumonia, and hypoxia may fail to respond to conventional therapy and ventilatory management. In this life-threatening scenario, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) therapy can be lifesaving, though literature on its use in burn patients with ARDS is limited. We report a case of Klebsiella pneumoniae pneumonia complicating into ARDS in a burn patient with resistant hypoxia, requiring ECMO therapy, with a favourable outcome.