Hypothermia and
decompressive craniectomy (DC) have been considered as treatment for
traumatic brain injury. The present study investigates whether selective brain
hypothermia added to
craniectomy could improve neurological outcome after
brain trauma. Male CD-1 mice were assigned into the following groups:
sham; DC;
closed head injury (CHI); CHI followed by
craniectomy (CHI+DC); and CHI+DC followed by focal
hypothermia (CHI+DC+H). At 24 h post-
trauma, animals were subjected to Neurological Severity Score (NSS) test and Beam Balance Score test. At the same time point, magnetic resonance imaging using a 9.4 Tesla scanner and subsequent volumetric evaluation of
edema and
contusion were performed. Thereafter, the animals were sacrificed and subjected to histopathological analysis. According to NSS, there was a significant impairment among all the groups subjected to
trauma. Animals with both
trauma and
craniectomy performed significantly worse than animals with
craniectomy alone. This deleterious effect disappeared when additional
hypothermia was applied. BBS was significantly worse in the CHI and CHI+DC groups, but not in the CHI+DC+H group, compared to the
sham animals.
Edema and
contusion volumes were significantly increased in CHI+DC animals, but not in the CHI+DC+H group, compared to the DC group. Histopathological analysis showed that neuronal loss and contusional blossoming could be attenuated by application of selective brain
hypothermia. Selective brain cooling applied post-
trauma and
craniectomy improved neurological function and reduced structural damage and may be therefore an alternative to complication-burdened systemic
hypothermia. Clinical studies are recommended in order to explore the potential of this treatment.