Rectal Instillation of Cold Fluids for Targeted Temperature Management After Cardiac Arrest: A Case Report

The optimal method of temperature management after cardiac arrest remains unknown. Methods that are most effective are usually invasive and expensive. Noninvasive methods are not as effective and obstruct access to the patient. Temperature management via rectal cooling offers some potential advantages in survivors of cardiac arrest, namely, relatively large volumes of temperature-controlled fluids can be instilled, access to the patient is not obstructed, and fluid overload can be ameliorated by removal of a fraction of instilled fluid. We used rectal cooling in a 72-year-old male comatose survivor of cardiac arrest with an initial body temperature of 36.8°C. We instilled 3000 mL of normal saline at 4°C in 75 minutes, and ∼2000 mL of effluent fluid was removed via gravity at 105 minutes after instillation. At 135 minutes, temperature decreased to a minimum of 35.2°C. No leakage was observed. Standard procedures (insertion of central venous and arterial catheters, electrocardiography, echocardiography, chest radiography) were performed with a rectal catheter in situ. At 210 minutes after instillation, the catheter was removed and there were no clinical signs of rectal injury after removal. To conclude, rectal instillation of cold fluids resulted in a significant decrease of body temperature and we observed no major side effects. Fluid overloading was avoided by removing effluent fluid. Additional studies are needed if this technique is to gain more widespread use.