[Heart preservation by means of hypothermia and hyperbaric oxygenation]

The efficiency of the methods of hypothermia and hyperbaric oxygenation for the preservation of canine hearts was studied. The cardiac function was found to reestablish itself nearly completely after 3 hours of preservation, despite some significant metabolic shifts -- disintegration of oxidation and phosphorylation, activation of lysosomal enzymes, reduction of the store of adenyl macroergs and biogenic amines. Five hours of preservation result in irreversible changes in the heart.