New, faster therapeutic hypothermia techniques

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

23-Oct-2014

Contact: Kathryn Ryan kryan@liebertpub.com 914-740-2100 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News @LiebertOnline

New Rochelle, NY, October 23, 2014Rapid lowering of body temperature following an acute myocardial infarction (MI) can be an effective therapeutic strategy to minimize damage to the heart muscle caused by the loss and restoration of blood flow to the heart. While hypothermia shows clinical promise, current methods to cool the heart are insufficient. Faster, more effective techniques are needed to realize the full cardioprotective potential of this emerging intervention, as described in an article in Therapeutic Hypothermia and Temperature Management, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the Therapeutic Hypothermia and Temperature Management website at http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/ther.2014.0016 until November 23, 2014.

In the article "Hypothermia in the Setting of Experimental Acute Myocardial Infarction: A Comprehensive Review", Michael J. Herring and coauthors from Good Samaritan Hospital and Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA) and Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (Torrance, CA) examine the benefits and limitations of past and current methods of delivering hypothermia. These include topical regional hypothermia, an open-chest method of cooling the heart; endovascular cooling using a heat exchange balloon catheter to cool the blood that flows through the heart; surface cooling with blankets or convective-immersion therapy; and other methods.

"This timely review on the use of therapeutic hypothermia targeting myocardial necrosis emphasizes the need for additional investigations to maximize the benefits of this experimental therapy in promoting recovery in this patient population," says W. Dalton Dietrich, PhD, Editor-in-Chief of Therapeutic Hypothermia and Temperature Management and Kinetic Concepts Distinguished Chair in Neurosurgery, Professor of Neurological Surgery, Neurology and Cell Biology, University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine.

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About the Journal

Therapeutic Hypothermia and Temperature Management provides a strong multidisciplinary forum covering all aspects of hypothermia and temperature considerations relevant to this exciting field, including its application in cardiac arrest, spinal cord and traumatic brain injury, stroke, and burns. Novel findings from translational preclinical investigations as well as clinical studies and trials are featured in peer-reviewed articles, state-of-the-art review articles, provocative roundtable discussions, clinical protocols, and best practices. Therapeutic Hypothermia and Temperature Management is the journal of record, published online with Open Access options and in print. Tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the Therapeutic Hypothermia and Temperature Management website at http://www.liebertpub.com/ther.

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New, faster therapeutic hypothermia techniques