Patient Hospitalised in Early 2023 Due to Influenza B

A 33-year-old patient at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago was kept alive for 48 hours using artificial lungs after surgeons removed both lungs, buying critical time for a successful double lung transplant.

The patient was admitted in 2023 after contracting Influenza B, which progressed to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and necrotizing pneumonia.

Despite being on a ventilator and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), the patient developed refractory septic shock, suffered multiple cardiac arrests, and experienced kidney failure. Doctors reported that the infection could not be controlled while the severely damaged lungs remained in his body, according to the journal Med.

He Faced an Extremely High Risk of Death

Dr Ankit Bharat, chief of thoracic surgery at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, and his team performed a bilateral pneumonectomy, removing both lungs to eliminate the source of infection.

To replace lung function, the team developed a custom extracorporeal total artificial lung (TAL) system. The device oxygenated the patient’s blood, removed carbon dioxide, and helped regulate circulation to support heart function.

Dr Bharat said the patient suffered cardiac arrest shortly after arriving at the hospital but was successfully resuscitated. “He was critically ill. It was very clear that we had to do something right away,” he told Scientific American. He added that when an infection becomes so severe that the lungs are “melting,” the damage is irreversible, according to Precision Medicine.

The team then developed “artificial lungs” designed to pump blood from the right side of the patient’s heart to the left, oxygenate it, and circulate it throughout the body.

Recovery and Transplant Succes

Within 48 hours, the patient’s condition began to improve, with blood pressure stabilising and kidney function returning to normal. Doctors were able to discontinue medications supporting his heart. Tests on the removed lungs later confirmed irreversible damage, underscoring the need for a transplant.

The patient was placed on the waiting list for a double-lung transplant and received donor organs shortly afterward. More than two years later, he has normal lung function and shows no signs of organ rejection.

Dr Bharat said the case provides the first biological evidence that some patients with severe lung damage will not survive without a double lung transplant. He noted that many young patients die because transplantation is not considered in time, adding that for severe lung damage caused by respiratory viruses or infections, even in acute cases, a lung transplant can be lifesaving.

Dr Natasha Rogers, a nephrology specialist at Westmead Hospital in Sydney, said the procedure requires a large, highly specialised medical team and is currently only possible at major medical centres, according to CGTN News.

Influenza B is a strain of the flu virus that primarily targets the respiratory system, causing symptoms such as fever, cough, sore throat, and body aches. In severe cases, it can lead to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), a life-threatening condition in which the lungs become severely inflamed and fluid fills the air sacs, reducing oxygen levels in the blood and making breathing difficult.