Targeted temperature management in brain edema

Abstract

Background: Targeted temperature management is a treatment strategy to lower core body temperature to achieve neuroprotection or reduce elevated intracranial pressure. Therefore, it has been increasingly used in the neurointensive care unit to manage various types of acute neurologic injuries.Current Concepts: Targeted temperature management can be divided into three distinct phases, including induction, maintenance, and rewarming, and each phase has risks and predictable complications. In patients with acute neurocritical illnesses, including traumatic brain injury, subarachnoid hemorrhage, intracranial hemorrhage, and ischemic stroke, brain edema is a potentially life-threatening complication as it raises the intracranial pressure, leading to brain herniation and permanent neurological damage. In this sense, targeted temperature management can be considered the final strategy for medical treatment for controlling an intracranial pressure crisis in patients with severe brain injury.Discussion and Conclusion: In the neurointensive care unit, applying targeted temperature management to patients with severe brain injuries may be challenging. Targeted temperature management in critically ill neurological patients is associated with an increased risk of systemic complications, as hypothermia is prolonged, requiring a comprehensive patient-by-patient assessment of the advantages and disadvantages of treatment. Except for cerebral pressure management, analyses of targeted temperature management in patients with traumatic brain injury and subarachnoid hemorrhage remain controversial regarding its effect on prognosis. Targeted temperature management should be reserved for selective patients, and further studies are needed to improve the efficacy of hypothermia for individual conditions, including intracerebral hemorrhage and ischemic stroke.