Liquid Ventilation for the Induction of Ultrafast Hypothermia in Resuscitation Sciences: A Review

Liquid ventilation was initially proposed for lung lavage and respiratory support. More recently, it was also investigated as an experimental strategy for ultrafast cooling or organ preservation during ischemic disorders. The goal of this article is to identify and review the studies that investigated liquid ventilation in the field of resuscitation sciences. An exhaustive analysis of the literature was performed using the Medline database up to 15th September 2015. Articles were selected according to their relevance. All articles focusing on respiratory support were excluded. On the basis of 76 retrieved studies from the Medline database, 29 were included in this review. All studies were experimental reports and most of them investigated the cooling properties of liquid ventilation in animal models of experimental cardiac arrest or coronary artery occlusion in rabbits or pigs. Animal studies demonstrated a wide range of potential applications of total liquid ventilation in resuscitation sciences. This strategy is able to provide ultrafast cooling, independent of the body weight. In animal models of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, it was shown to provide potent benefits widely linked to cooling rapidity.