life support

noun

: medical equipment, treatments, or medications that temporarily replace or support the function of one or more failing organs in a seriously ill or injured patient and that provide an opportunity for stabilization or recovery

The patient was placed on life support.

A mechanical pump that was invented as a temporary life support for patients with advanced heart failure is emerging as a potential tool to help hearts heal and function for the long term on their own.

—Ron Winslow

The current pediatric and adult life support recommendations suggest an epinephrine administration interval … of 3–5 minutes during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

—Donald H. Shaffner and Clifton W. Callaway

—sometimes hyphenated when used before another noun

life-support equipment

life-support measures

Examples of life support in a Sentence

He was removed from life support.

She was put on life support.

equipment providing life support for astronauts

Recent Examples on the Web

The elder Bech, 28, died after being taken to a New Orleans hospital following the attack and was kept on life support till his family could arrive according to Louisiana TV station KLFY. —Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 Jan. 2025

PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver consulted with the wrong family over the phone about whether to keep him on life support, the lawsuit filed in Clark County says. —Julia Marnin, Sacramento Bee, 10 Jan. 2025

Since then, everything has completely unraveled, leading to a grisly 5-10-1 stretch that’s put the Rangers’ playoff hopes on life support. —Dom Luszczyszyn, The Athletic, 9 Jan. 2025

The first was the 13-year-old girl in Canada, who became critically ill with lung and kidney failure and was put on life support for two weeks to give her organs time to recover. —Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 8 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1974, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

life support

noun

: medical equipment, treatments, or medications used to temporarily replace or support the function of one or more failing organs in a seriously ill or injured patient and that provide an opportunity for stabilization or recovery

Extracorporeal life support … is used to support the circulation of a patient with severe cardiac failure. The physiologic objective is to provide temporary circulatory support to the vital organs and to unload the failing heart as the injured myocardium attempts to recover.

—Massimo Massetti et al., The Annals of Thoracic Surgery

Most of the patients from whom support was withheld or withdrawn had intracranial lesions, usually the result of trauma. A poor prognosis or brain death prompted the withholding or withdrawal of life support in most patients.

—Nicholas G. Smedira et al., The New England Journal of Medicine

—sometimes hyphenated when used before another noun

The principles of medical ethics permit active, direct euthanasia … as well as passive and indirect forms. The latter include withholding or removing life-support measures, administering effective pain controls that often hasten death, and assisting patients in suicide.

—Susan S. Mattingly, The New England Journal of Medicine