title: Cardiac arrest survivors treated with or without mild therapeutic hypothermia: performance status and quality of life assessment.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy is the main determinant of clinical outcome after cardiac arrest. The study was designed to determine long-term neurological and psychological status in cardiac arrest survivors, as well as to compare neuropsychological outcomes between patients treated with mild therapeutic hypothermia (MTH) and patients who did not undergo hypothermia treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  The article describes a single-center, retrospective, observational study on 28 post-cardiac arrest adult patients treated in the cardiac intensive care unit who qualified for MTH vs. 37 control group patients, hospitalized at the same center following cardiac arrest in the preceding years and fulfilling criteria for induced hypothermia, but who were not treated due to unavailability of the method at that time. Disability Rating Scale (DRS), Barthel Index and RAND-36 were used to assess performance status and quality of life in both study groups after hospital discharge.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were no statistically significant differences in physical functioning found between groups either at the end of hospital treatment or at long-term follow-up (DRS: p = 0.11; Barthel Index: p = 0.83). In long-term follow-up, MTH patients showed higher vitality (p = 0.02) and reported fewer complaints on role limitations due to emotional problems (p = 0.04) compared to the control group. No significant differences were shown between study groups in terms of physical capacity and independent functioning.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  To conclude, in long-term follow-up, MTH patients showed higher vitality and reported fewer complaints on role limitations due to emotional problems compared to the control group. This suggest that MTH helps to preserve global brain function in cardiac arrest survivors. However, the results can be biased by a small sample size and variable observation periods.
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kowalik
authors.forename: Ewa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Szczerba
authors.forename: Łukasz
authors.initials: Ł
authors.lastname: Kołtowski
authors.forename: Marcin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Grabowski
authors.forename: Karolina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Chojnacka
authors.forename: Wojciech
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Golecki
authors.forename: Adam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hołubek
authors.forename: Grzegorz
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Opolski
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016887:Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006323:Heart Arrest / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007036:Hypothermia, Induced / Q000379:methods*; D020925:Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D011788:Quality of Life; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome