The Olympic Cool-Cap System is a helmet

Helmet

A helmet is a form of protective gear worn on the head to protect it from injuries.Ceremonial or symbolic helmets without protective function are sometimes used. The oldest known use of helmets was by Assyrian soldiers in 900BC, who wore thick leather or bronze helmets to protect the head from...

 designed to provide hypothermia therapy for neonatal encephalopathy

Hypothermia therapy for neonatal encephalopathy

Brain hypothermia, induced by cooling a baby to around 33°C for three days after birth, is a treatment for birth asphyxia. It has recently been proven to be the only medical intervention which reduces brain damage, and improves an infant's chance of normal survival...

 caused by hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy

Cerebral hypoxia

Cerebral hypoxia refers to a reduced supply of oxygen to the brain. Cerebral anoxia refers to a complete lack of oxygen to the brain. There are four separate categories of cerebral hypoxia; in order of severity they are; diffuse cerebral hypoxia , focal cerebral ischemia, cerebral infarction, and...

 (HIE), preventing cerebral palsy

Cerebral palsy

Cerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....

 in babies born with little or no oxygen

Oxygen

Oxygen is the element with atomic number 8 and represented by the symbol O. Its name derives from the Greek roots ὀξύς and -γενής , because at the time of naming, it was mistakenly thought that all acids required oxygen in their composition...

.

The device works by a steady flow of water

Water

Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...

 at a selected temperature through a cap covering the infant's head to cool the brain within the first six hours of life. By cooling the brain, cell metabolism is slowed which prevents toxins from injured cells from spreading to other parts of the brain.

History

Investigations into neonatal hypoxic-ischemic cerebral injury in the period from 2000 to 2006 made it clear that for a group of high risk babies a slight temperature reduction could provide a significant reduction in brain injury. By 2007 reviewers found that cooling was a safe and effective intervention. Some doubt remained as to whether it was warranted in cases of asphyxiation, but by 2009 reviewers found that it reduced the occurrence of severe neurological problems.

Use

The device was first approved by the Food and Drug Administration

Food and Drug Administration

The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...

 in late 2006 and hailed as "bring[ing] new hope to parents of the approximately 5,000 to 9,000 babies each year who are born in the United States with moderate to severe hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy".

It is also used in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

, where it treats 1,000 babies per year.

Cooling is currently the only tool doctors can use to prevent neurological disorders caused by hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy.

Chemotherapy

Although doubt remains about the effectiveness of the Cool-Cap System on patients undergoing chemotherapy

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....

 using Epirubicin

Epirubicin

Epirubicin is an anthracycline drug used for chemotherapy. It is marketed by Pfizer under the trade name Ellence in the US and Pharmorubicin or Epirubicin Ebewe elsewhere....

 and Docetaxel, studies suggest there is statistically significant, but marginal, decrease in hair loss in study participants.

Side effects

In tests, minor cardiac arrhythmias occurred slightly more often in cooled infants, however the effect was not unexpected because mild sinus bradycardia

Sinus bradycardia

Sinus bradycardia is a heart rhythm that originates from the sinus node and has a rate of under 60 beats per minute.-Signs and symptoms:The decreased heart rate can cause a decreased cardiac output resulting in symptoms such as lightheadedness, dizziness, hypotension, vertigo, and syncope...

 is known to be associated with hypothermia

Hypothermia

Hypothermia is a condition in which core temperature drops below the required temperature for normal metabolism and body functions which is defined as . Body temperature is usually maintained near a constant level of through biologic homeostasis or thermoregulation...

. In tests, all cases were resolved with appropriate therapy. The Cool-Cap System also increased the incidence of scalp edema

Edema

Edema or oedema ; both words from the Greek , oídēma "swelling"), formerly known as dropsy or hydropsy, is an abnormal accumulation of fluid beneath the skin or in one or more cavities of the body that produces swelling...

; however, all cases were resolved prior to or after completion of treatment.