Therapeutic Hypothermia with Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) and Surface Cooling in Post-Cardiac Arrest Patients: 4 Case Reports
Akkaphol Pinichjindasup MD*, Boonlawat Homvises MD*, Sombat Muengtaweepongsa MD*
Affiliation : * Faculty of Medicine, Thammasat University, Pathumthani, Thailand
Background : Therapeutic hypothermia has been recently approved to show benefits for neurological outcomes in patients
after cardiac arrest. Application of both ECMO and surface cooling for treatment of therapeutic hypothermia has not yet been
reported in the literature. We reported four cases that experienced in-hospital cardiac arrest during ECMO application
treated with therapeutic hypothermia under surface cooling at Thammasat University Hospital.
Case Reports: Four cases of in-hospital cardiac arrest during ECMO application were treated with therapeutic hypothermia
under surface cooling with similar machine. The characteristics of each patient were described. The core temperature control
during treatment was reported with temperature curves. A Glasgow coma score was used as index for neurological outcome
Conclusion : Application of surface cooling together with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is safe and
feasible. Both devices facilitate treatment with therapeutic hypothermia in patients with post-cardiac arrest.
Keywords : Therapeutic hypothermia, Cardiac arrest, Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, Surface cooling
