The discovery of hypothermic neural rescue therapy for perinatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy.
The development of the concepts of delayed post-ischaemic neuronal death and neural rescue brought about a search for clinical treatments to reduce brain damage after birth asphyxia. Cooling had long been an unproven empyrical therapy, and a 20 year programme of careful laboratory and clinical research has proved that hypothermia reduces neurological damage in infants suffering perinatal asphyxial encephalopathy.
Edwards
A David
AD
Division of Clinical Sciences, MRC Clinical Sciences Centre, Hammersmith Hospital, Imperial College London, London, UK. david.edwards@imperial.ac.uk
D001238:Asphyxia Neonatorum / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D002658:Developmental Disabilities / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D007036:Hypothermia, Induced / Q000379:methods*; D020925:Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007232:Infant, Newborn, Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*