Citation

Bräuer A, Wrigge H, Kersten J, Rathgeber J, Weyland W, Burchardi H. Intensive Care Med. 1999; 25(5): 520-523.

Affiliation

Dept. of Anesthesiology, Emergency and Intensive Care Medicine, University of Göttingen, Germany. abraeue@gwdg.de

Copyright

(Copyright © 1999, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

10401949

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To study a rewarming strategy for patients with severe accidental hypothermia using a simple veno-venous bypass in combination with a convective air warmer. SETTING: Eighteen beds in a university hospital intensive care unit. PATIENTS: Four adults admitted with a core temperature less than 30 degrees C. Hypothermia was caused by alcoholic intoxication in three patients and by drug overdose in one patient. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: All patients were rewarmed by a venovenous bypass and in three cases a convective air warmer was also used. At a bypass flow rate of 100-300 ml/min the mean increase in core temperature was 1.15 degrees C/h (Range: 1.1-1.2 degrees C/h). One patient died 2 days after rewarming as a consequence of a reactivated pancreatitis. The other three patients survived without neurological sequelae. CONCLUSION: This rewarming technique seems safe and effective and allowed the controlled rewarming of our patients who suffered from severe accidental hypothermia

Language: en