New technology to prevent brain damage in newborns with HIE

Cool-Cap System

The Cool-Cap system was designed to prevent or reduce brain damage in newborns with oxygen problems during birth. It works by keeping the head cool while the body is maintained at a slightly below-normal temperature.

Video: Dr. Cipriani talks about the CoolCap system

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Neonatologist Dr. Cheryl Cipriani discusses the Cool-Cap technology with members of the Scott & White Auxiliary.

The Auxiliary donated $75,000 for the purchase of the Cool-Cap system for the Scott & White NICU. The Children's Hospital is currently the only hospital in the state offering this technology.

Cerebral palsy (CP) is one of the side-effects newborns risk when their oxygen supply has unexpectedly been interrupted during birth.

Scott & White is the first hospital in Texas to use a new cap that cools the brain of a newborn when this occurs. It is called the Olympic Cool-Cap® system, and doctors hope this new technology can slow the progress of some damage, or even reverse the effects of brain damage, that can occur when oxygen has been stopped.

Babies face serious medical complications when their oxygen supply has been interrupted or cut off during the birth process. This condition, called HIE (hypoxicischemic encephalopathy), can lead to permanent brain damage. It can cause cerebral palsy and other neurological disorders.

“HIE can occur in births that are premature or full-term, it doesn’t matter,” said Dr. Cheryl Cipriani, a neonatologist and associate professor of pediatrics at Scott & White. “And when it occurs there is a limited amount of time to begin treatment to limit or avoid brain damage. We now have an FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approved tool that may help in some of the situations.”

“Treatment must begin within the first six hours,” Dr. Cipriani said.

HIE affects two out of 1,000 births, and is frequently a cause of cerebral palsy and other neurological disorders.

Cool-Cap was designed to prevent or reduce damage to the brains of these patients by keeping the head cool while the body is maintained at a slightly below-normal temperature. It works by lowering the metabolic rate, which reduces the brain’s demand for energy. The device received approval by the FDA late last year after many years of testing and evaluation.

The device consists of a network of soft, water-circulating tubes, which spread the cooling effect around the child’s head. The baby’s core body temperature monitored constantly, and kept at safe levels by using a radiant warmer.

The Scott & White Auxiliary donated $75,000 to purchase the device.

Cool-Cap is manufactured by Olympic Medical Corporation of Seattle, Wash.

“There are other hospitals in the state using or researching cooling treatments, but not this FDA approved therapy,” said Dr. Cipriani. “Parents now have a place to go when their newborn needs this type of help. With our neonatal intensive care unit transport team we are able to bring these children from a very wide area to receive this treatment.”

Scott & White neonatal intensive care transport teams can travel by land or air, as far as 200 miles, to pick up infant patients and bring them to the hospital for specialty care.

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