Tuesday February 20, 2007
EPR


Dr. Patrick M. Kochanek from Safar Center for Resuscitation Research, Pittsburgh, PA delivered the keynote speech on "Beyond CPR" at 36th Critical Care Congress of The Society of Critical Care Medicine at Orlando, Florida on sunday feb. 18, 2007. The message was one word - EPR.

Emergency Preservation and Resuscitation

EPR is induction of profound hypothermia for trauma victims who experience exsanguination cardiac arrest.

In lab, canines received 20 L of a 2°C saline aortic flush to achieve a brain temperature of 10°C to 15°C. EPR lasted 60 minutes and was followed by a 2-hour resuscitation by cardiopulmonary bypass. The conventional group with CPR dogs were maintained at 38.0°C. In the EPR groups, mild hypothermia (34°C) was maintained for either 12 (EPR-I) or 36 (EPR-II) hours. Function and brain histology were evaluated 60 hours after rewarming in all dogs.

EPR was found superior to conventional CPR in facilitating normal recovery after cardiac arrest from trauma and prolonged hemorrhage. Also, prolonged mild hypothermia after EPR was critical for achieving intact neurological outcomes.

It was amazing to watch videos of normal dog after these life-threatening experiments with EPR.


Reference: click to get abstract/article

1. Induction of Profound Hypothermia for Emergency Preservation and Resuscitation Allows Intact Survival After Cardiac Arrest Resulting From Prolonged Lethal Hemorrhage and Trauma in Dogs - Circulation. 2006;113:1974-1982.