In vivo carbon dioxide clearance of a low-flow extracorporeal carbon dioxide removal circuit in patients with acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The extracorporeal carbon dioxide removal device used in the study provides efficient clearance of CO2 at low sweep flow rates which then plateaus. This has implications for how the device may be used in clinical practice, particularly during the weaning phase where the final discontinuation of the device may take longer than anticipated. (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02086084, registered 13 March 2014, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02086084 ).