Lowering body temperature increases survival, brain function in cardiac arrest patients with non-shockable heart rhythms

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-11/aha-lbt111115.php

Public Release: 16-Nov-2015
Lowering body temperature increases survival, brain function in cardiac arrest patients with non-shockable heart rhythms
American Heart Association rapid access journal report
American Heart Association

owering the body's temperature of cardiac arrest patients with "non-shockable" heart rhythms increases survival rates and brain function, according to new research in the American Heart Association's journal Circulation.

Therapeutic hypothermia is a medical treatment that intentionally lowers the body's temperature to protect the body following a period of insufficient blood flow due to such events as a cardiac arrest, blood clot or stroke.

Although previous studies have shown that therapeutic hypothermia can improve survival and neurological function, it is more commonly recommended for patients with "shockable" rhythms such as ventricular fibrillation -- a condition where the lower chambers quiver and the heart can't pump any blood, causing cardiac arrest.

Findings from a new study show that therapeutic hypothermia may also benefit comatose cardiac arrest patients with "non-shockable" heart rhythms - those that won't respond to the defibrillation because there is no pulse or electrical activity in the heart.

•••••