Therapeutic Hypothermia

Course overview

Traditionally, advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) focused solely on ensuring the return of spontaneous circulation with medications and electrical defibrillation. It did not focus on the long-term effects of cardiac arrest, such as the actions of free radicals and nitric oxide on the brain that contribute to ongoing nervous system degeneration. But in 2003, the American Heart Association (AHA) recommended a therapy that has come to be known as therapeutic hypothermia (TH), to reduce a patients core body temperature, which minimizes the harmful effects of hypoxia on the central nervous system (CNS).