The treatment
Therapeutic hypothermia treatment is beneficial for those who have an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. As soon as they are brought into Mission Hospital, they are placed on a machine that cools them down to about 92 or 93 degrees for 24 hours and then slowly warms them up. The treatment can also be administered using chilled water blankets and ice packs. The ER team needs an extensive protocol for support since patients have to be sedated before being placed in the machine and must be monitored continuously. The procedure for administering the treatment needs to be tried and tested at one hospital before affiliate hospitals can follow suit, says Dr. Hansen.
Implementation
The treatment first needs to be established in a major medical center. The center needs to decide which machine it will use and how care will be coordinated once the treatment is incorporated. Once it is firmly established in one hospital, it can reach out to its affiliate hospitals. If a patient who has suffered an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is brought to an affiliate facility, they can be cooled down before being transferred to the main facility and placed in the machine. At Mission Health emergency medical services have started carrying ice packs so that they can start cooling a patient down as soon as they pick them up. “The sooner a patient can be cooled, the better we think their outcome will be,” says Dr. Hansen.
Improving outcomes
The treatment not only improves the survival rate of patients who have suffered a cardiac arrest but also improves their neurological outcomes. The idea for this treatment follows from the knowledge that a person who has fallen through ice often recovers with little or no brain damage, says Dr. Hansen. However, it is important to keep in mind that while this treatment is known to be beneficial for those who have suffered out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, it is still not certain that it will be beneficial for those with weakened hearts or other long-term heart problems who suffer a cardiac arrest. Making sure you have the correct patient for the treatment is important, says Dr. Hansen.
“The ultimate goal is to ensure that patients have a meaningful neurologic recovery and not just survive a cardiac arrest,” says Dr. Hansen, “Therapeutic hypothermia, we think, gives them the best shot at that.”
More Articles on Mission Health:
Mission Health, Hope Women’s Cancer Centers Partner for Cancer Care
Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center Breaks Ground on Cancer Center
Mission Health’s McDowell Hospital to Develop Long-Range Strategic Plan
