Top Neurology Programs Control Fever with Arctic Sun Cooling Technology

Medivance’s safe temperature management technology, aggressive fever control may improve neurologic outcomes after stroke or brain injury

LOUISVILLE, Colo., March 25 /PRNewswire/ — The nation’s top-rated neurology programs cool their critically ill stroke and brain injured patients with the non-invasive, safe and technologically advanced Arctic Sun(R) Temperature Management System from Medivance.

Nearly 80 percent, or 23 of the 30 top-ranked neurology programs at community and academic medical centers, are among numerous hospitals that prefer the ease, speed and safety of the nurse-implemented Arctic Sun.

Aggressive fever control improves outcomes

Mounting clinical evidence suggests that aggressively controlling fever potentially improves outcomes.

Investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital, which employs the Arctic Sun and was ranked the #3 neurology program in US News & World Report, analyzed data from 39 studies that enrolled more than 14,400 patients with ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke and traumatic brain injuries. They found that in all studies, fever was consistently linked to poor outcomes: higher mortality, greater disability, worse functional outcomes, greater severity, and longer ICU stays. The study was reported in Stroke.

“This study shows a clear association of fever with worse neurological outcome for any brain-injured patient, regardless of the outcome measure used,” said lead author David Greer, MD, Director of the Inpatient Stroke Service at Massachusetts General Hospital. “Future studies should focus on the likely beneficial effect of fever control in these patients. At the present time, clinicians should be encouraged to use aggressive fever control by whatever means possible, in the hopes that this will improve neurological outcomes.”

Presentations at the 2009 Stroke meeting also advance the case for using mild therapeutic hypothermia to treat neurologic injury.

Notably, radiographic findings presented by researchers from the Medical College of Wisconsin found that in large ischemic stroke, therapeutic hypothermia may have a positive impact on controlling swelling. And various researchers from Germany, Japan and California presented experimental data indicating that rt-PA therapy combined with hypothermia in acute stroke resulted in a reduction in the risk of complications, including hemorrhage.

Least invasive interventions preferred

Preference for the non-invasive Arctic Sun by the top neurology programs is in keeping with the strong trend in medicine toward employing the most effective, least invasive methods with the lowest risk of serious complications.

“The nation’s best neurology programs have in common an unwavering commitment to achieving the best possible outcomes for their patients,” said Medivance CEO Robert Kline. “We are delighted that they continue to choose the Arctic Sun, the safest of the advanced cooling technologies, to help avert brain injury.”

About Medivance’s Arctic Sun

The non-invasive Arctic Sun Temperature Management System precisely monitors and maintains core body temperature in a therapeutic range, between 32 degrees and 38.5 degrees Celsius (approximately 89.6 degrees to 101.3 degrees Fahrenheit) with the potential to minimize damage to the heart and brain. The patented design of the Arctic Sun and ArcticGel(TM) Pads enables them to transfer up to five times more thermal energy than conventional products such as water blankets, wraps or ice packs, resulting in more efficient temperature management. The system’s precision also enables the slow rewarming thought to be critical to therapeutic benefit. The Arctic Sun has received 510(k) FDA clearance in the U.S., the European Union’s CE Mark, marketing approval in Japan and other global markets. Medivance develops and manufactures non-invasive, proprietary therapeutic temperature management solutions. More information at www.medivance.com.

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SOURCE Medivance