Therapeutic hypothermia in traumatic brain injury.

Traumatic brain injury is a leading cause of death by trauma in adults in the United States and a major contributor to permanent physical, emotional, and psychological disabilities. Therapeutic hypothermia, defined as cooling of the body to less than 36 degrees C, has been shown to decrease mortality and morbidity and improve long-term outcomes by protecting the brain from secondary brain injury. The most commonly seen benefits of hypothermic temperatures of 32 degrees C to 33 degrees C are a significant reduction in intracranial hypertension and improved cerebral perfusion and oxygenation.