Targeted Temperature Management During the Summer Months

This issue of Therapeutic Hypothermia and Temperature Management contains two Expert Panel Discussions that were generated during the 2018 Chilling at the Beach Symposium in Miami, Florida. The first Expert Panel Discussion was moderated by Dr. Justin Lundbye with presenters including Drs. David Greer, Kees Polderman, and Shoji Yokobori. This session was followed by a question-and-answer session that concentrated on new advances for the use of temperature management in neurological intensive care settings, including stroke, subarachnoid, and intracranial hemorrhage. Proven approaches to reduce fever burden, hypothermia benefits for acute respiratory distress syndrome, and clinical studies targeting reperfusion injury after brain injury were discussed. The second Expert Panel Discussion focused on the use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation as a technique targeting cardiac and respiratory problems in patients undergoing hypothermic interventions. This round table discussion was moderated by Dr. Hans Friberg with presenters Drs. Jonathan Paul, Graham Nichol, and Takahiro Nakashima. All the presentations provided new information to the attendees followed by an informative question-and-answer session that has resulted in the current publications.

In addition to these contributions, this issue contains five original articles. Dr. Xiaopeng Zhong investigated the beneficial effects of dihydrocapsaicin-induced mild hypothermia and compared this hypothermia strategy with more conventional methods of inducing hypothermia after cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Dr. Jan Sedlacik and colleagues presented a study using a novel high-flow cold air cooling protocol to induce localized hypothermia in the frontal porcine brain. Dr. Ana Klahr and colleagues evaluated the effects of cooling the contralateral hemisphere on behavioral recovery after a unilateral cortical injury in rats. In addition, Dr. Dong Hun Lee and colleagues reported plasma levels of neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin after cardiac arrest as a potential early predictor of acute kidney injury. Finally, Dr. Bernard Laughin and colleagues tested whether an A₁ adenosine receptor N₆-cyclohexyladenosine coupled with induced cooling could achieve and maintain consistent levels of therapeutic hypothermia. A case report provided by Dr. Xuan Wang and colleagues described an intravascular cooling catheter-related venous thromboembolism.

In addition to these interesting articles, a new addition of The Arctic Challenge also provides new information regarding common questions asked in the field of targeted temperature management. For example, one question pertains to the use of mixed venous gas during therapeutic hypothermia and what the clinical implications of this practice are. Because pharmacologic agents are known to be metabolized differently during therapeutic hypothermia, basic rules and regulations are discussed regarding medication delivery. A common question regarding how often one should check blood glucose in postcardiac patients who have been cooled is also addressed and discussed. Together, these and other questions and answers provide the reader with up-to-date information regarding the use of hypothermia in the various patient populations. We appreciate the readership of the Journal and hope these publications provide new information regarding therapeutic hypothermia and temperature management in both experimental and clinical settings. We greatly appreciate the authors for submitting to the Journal as well as the editorial board and other reviewers for providing quality reviews for the submitted articles. Please continue to consider Therapeutic Hypothermia and Temperature Management for the publication of your latest findings in this emerging and most exciting field of research.