Objective: To compare a standard and an experimental method of rewarming in 5-wk-old goats with induced moderate hypothermia.
Design: Hypothermia was induced in ten juvenile Nubian goats. Five goats were randomly assigned to be rewarmed using standard techniques, and five were assigned to the experimental rewarming technique of a modified continuous venovenous hemofiltration circuit.
Setting: Animal research facility, Greenville Hospital System/Clemson University Biomedical Cooperative, Clemson, S.C.
Subjects: Ten 5-wk-old goats.
Interventions: Hypothermia to a body temperature of 29.4 degrees C was induced in the goats. Each of the control group of five goats was rewarmed using standard methods. Each of the experimental group of five goats was rewarmed using a modified continuous venovenous hemofiltration circuit.
Measurements and main results: At 2 hrs, the median temperature increase in the experimental group was 6.5 degrees C, compared with an increase of only 1.5 degrees C in the control group (p=.02). The mean increase in core body temperature over time (from baseline to 150 mins) was also significantly greater in the experimental group (p=.006).
Conclusions: The use of a modified continuous venovenous hemofiltration circuit for rewarming in a juvenile goat model after induction of moderate hypothermia is more effective than are standard methods.