Swine flu patient flown to Sweden

A PATIENT critically ill with swine flu was flown abroad for a specialised treatment only recently available here.

The patient was taken by air ambulance to the Karolinska Institute in Sweden for treatment using ECMO – extra corporeal membrane oxygenation – a technique most commonly used for newborns in pulmonary distress.

A spokeswoman for the Health Service Executive (HSE) said she was not at liberty to reveal whether the treatment was successful. It is often a treatment of last resort, used sometimes for adults, who even with the use of a respirator, need to be oxygenated until capable of doing the job themselves.