Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) has been used primarily to treat respiratory failure due to acute respiratory distress syndrome that failed to respond to maximal medical therapy. The use of ECMO in status asthmaticus is limited to case reports. We present three cases of patients with near-fatal status asthmaticus not relieved by conventional treatment, in whom early administration of ECMO resulted in a good outcome. In case 1 and 2, ECMO was instituted because of sustained hypercapnia and respiratory acidosis within 2 hours after initiation of mechanical ventilation. Patient 3 was supported by ECMO at 10 hours after intubation because of severe hypotension and hypercapnia. The lung status in these patients was rapidly recovered within days, and they were extubated at 31 , 67 hours and 4 days after initiation of ECMO, respectively. Successful weaning of ECMO was complete the next day after extubation in all patients. There was no significant complication related with ECMO in these patients. Mechanical ventilation for the patients with refractory status asthmaticus can have deleterious effects due to worsening dynamic hyperinflation and increase intrathoracic pressure. Early ECMO application is a useful treatment options for these patients failed to conventional therapy.