Hypothermia Therapy after Traumatic Brain Injury in Children

Hypothermia therapy improves survival and the neurologic outcome in animal models of traumatic brain injury. However, the effect of hypothermia therapy on the neurologic outcome and mortality among children who have severe traumatic brain injury is unknown.

In a multicenter, international trial, we randomly assigned children with severe traumatic brain injury to either hypothermia therapy (32.5 degrees C for 24 hours) initiated within 8 hours after injury or to normothermia (37.0 degrees C). The primary outcome was the proportion of children who had an unfavorable outcome (i.e., severe disability, persistent vegetative state, or death), as assessed on the basis of the Pediatric Cerebral Performance Category score at 6 months.