Immediate action can be lifesaving in a cardiac emergency. Now, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Rahway offers advanced treatment to reduce the risk of brain damage when heartbeats falter.
Therapeutic hypothermia is used to preserve brain function for patients surviving cardiac arrest. Recent studies show cooling body temperature during the first 24 hours after resuscitation can have a significant effect on a patient’s recovery.
“This treatment has been proven to protect neurological function, which can be damaged by the body’s response to restricted blood flow,” says Linda Quinto, Emergency Department (ED) and Critical Care Nurse Educator at RWJ Rahway. “Our aim is for patients who survive cardiac arrest to walk out of the hospital and return to their normal activities.”
Standard of Care
When patients fit the criteria for use of therapeutic hypothermia, trained nurses apply and monitor special cooling wraps to lower a patient’s body temperature to between 89.6° F and 93.2° F. Cooling the body gives the brain a break while other organs compete for oxygen. Hypothermia protects the brain cells from damage, a common problem after cardiac arrest.
“This treatment requires an understanding of how hypothermia works and training in ways to handle side effects,” says Ms. Quinto. “We provide this gold-standard treatment in resuscitation as our way of bringing the community the most up-to-date care.”
One Patient’s Story
In December 2009, Jeff Holt, 49, went into cardiac arrest in the ED at RWJ Rahway. The ED staff immediately treated him with cardiopulmonary resuscitation and medication, reviving him after 19 minutes. They then began cooling him with ice packs and external wraps, lowering his temperature to 91 degrees. The next day, the staff started the process of elevating his temperature.
Rosalia Rosa, Jeff’s wife, remembers the anxiety she felt over whether he might have lost memory or function.
“We were talking to him, telling him that we were going shopping to buy a microwave,” Ms. Rosa recalls. “When he asked us if we were going to buy the one he wanted, we knew he was okay.”