The impact of preoperative left ventricular (LV) unloading on postoperative outcomes in patients bridged with venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO) to heart transplantation (HT) is unknown. Our aim was to compare posttransplant outcomes in patients bridged to HT with VA-ECMO, with or without the use of different mechanical strategies for LV decompression.

We conducted a retrospective analysis of the postoperative outcomes of consecutive HT candidates bridged with VA-ECMO, with or without concomitant LV unloading. Patients were included from 16 Spanish centers from 2010 to 2020. The primary endpoint was 1-year post-HT survival, which was assessed using Cox regression.

Overall, 245 patients underwent high-emergency HT while supported with VA-ECMO. A mechanical strategy for LV unloading was used in 133 (54.3%) patients, with the intra-aortic balloon pump being the most commonly used method (n=112; 84.2%). One-year posttransplant survival was 74.4% in the LV unloading group and 59.8% in the control group (P=.025). In multivariate analyses, preoperative LV unloading was independently associated with lower 1-year mortality (adjusted HR, 0.50; 95%CI, 0.32–0.78; P=.003). This association was observed both in patients managed with an intra-aortic balloon pump alone (adjusted HR, 0.52; 95%CI, 0.32–0.84; P=.007) and with other strategies for mechanical LV unloading (adjusted HR, 0.43; 95%CI, 0.19–0.97; P=.042). No significant differences were found between groups regarding other postoperative complications.

Preoperative LV unloading was independently associated with increased 1-year posttransplant survival in candidates bridged with VA-ECMO.