Korean J Crit Care Med.  2013 Aug;28(3):218-220. 10.4266/kjccm.2013.28.3.218.

Treatment of Carbon Monoxide Poisoning with Therapeutic Hypothermia

• Lee YH
• Sohn YD
• Park SM
• Lee WW
• Ahn JY
• Ahn HC

• KMID: 2227845
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4266/kjccm.2013.28.3.218

Abstract

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a well-known chemical asphyxiant, which causes tissue hypoxia with prominent neurological injury. Therapeutic hypothermia (TH) has been shown to be an effective neuroprotective method in post-cardiac arrest patients. A 26-year-old man presented to the emergency department with severe CO poisoning. On arrival, the patient was comatose. His vital signs were blood pressure, 130/80 mm Hg; heart rate, 126/min; respiratory rate, 26/min; body temperature, 36degrees C; and O2 saturation, 94%. Initial carboxyhemoglobin was 45.2%. Because there was no available hyperbaric chamber in our local area, he was intubated and treated with TH. The target temperature was 33 +/- 1degrees C for 24 hours using an external cooling device. The patient was then allowed to reach normothermia by 0.15-0.25degrees C/hr. The patient was discharged after normal neurological exams on day 11 at the hospital. TH initiated after exposure to CO may be an effective prophylactic method for preventing neurological sequelae.

Keyword

carbon monoxide; complication; induced hypothermia; poisoning

MeSH Terms

Anoxia
Blood Pressure
Body Temperature
Carbon
Carbon Monoxide
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
Carboxyhemoglobin
Coma
Emergencies
Heart Rate
Humans
Hypothermia
Hypothermia, Induced
Respiratory Rate
Vital Signs
Carbon
Carbon Monoxide
Carboxyhemoglobin