RESP Score (Respiratory ECMO Survival)

RESP score (Schmidt 2014): age band, immunocompromise, pre-ECMO ventilation duration, acute respiratory diagnosis, and acute modifiers predict survival on respiratory ECMO (class I–V).

Open the calculator → Runs in your browser. Data leaves only if you deliberately send a problem report from the interactive tool.

Example

Age band
50-59 (-2)
Mechanical ventilation before ECMO
< 48 hours (+3)
Acute respiratory diagnosis
Trauma / burn (+3)
Immunocompromised
No
CNS dysfunction
No
Non-pulmonary infection
No
Neuromuscular blockade
No
Inhaled nitric oxide
No
Bicarbonate infusion
No
Cardiac arrest
No
The other 2 values
PaCO₂ ≥ 75 mmHg
No
Peak inspiratory pressure ≥ 42
No

Result: RESP score 4 — class II, predicted survival ~76%.

The tool opens with these values already filled in. Replace them with your own.

What the result means

I-II (>= 3)
Higher predicted respiratory-ECMO survival (~76-92%).
III-V (<= 2)
Lower predicted survival (~18-57%). A survival estimate, not an ECMO order.

What you enter

  • Age band (points)
  • Mechanical ventilation before ECMO (points)
  • Acute respiratory diagnosis (points)
  • Immunocompromised (−2)
  • CNS dysfunction (−7)
  • Non-pulmonary infection (−3)
  • Neuromuscular blockade (+1)
  • Inhaled nitric oxide (−1)
  • Bicarbonate infusion (−2)
  • Cardiac arrest (−2)
The other 2 fields
  • PaCO₂ ≥ 75 mmHg (−1)
  • Peak inspiratory pressure ≥ 42 (−1)
How this is calculated

Schmidt M, Bailey M, Sheldrake J, et al. Predicting survival after extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for severe acute respiratory failure: the Respiratory ECMO Survival Prediction (RESP) score. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2014;189(11):1374-1382. Read the source ↗

A reference and educational tool. Not medical, legal, or financial advice, and not a substitute for clinician judgment.

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Built by Clay Good. Source on GitHub.