A Current Approach to Sudden Unexpected Postpartum Collapse: Therapeutic Hypothermia

Sudden unexpected postnatal collapse is a pathology that describes term or near-term (>35 weeks gestation) newborns who are in good condition at birth and have good postnatal adaptation, who are taken to routine postnatal care and who unexpectedly collapse within the first seven days of life, who require resuscitation with intermittent positive pressure ventilation, who require continuous intensive care, or who develop encephalopathy. In recent years, therapeutic hypothermia has been discussed as an alternative treatment method for sudden unexpected postnatal collapse. Therapeutic hypothermia is a standard treatment for infants with moderate to severe hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy that is initiated within the first six hours of life and maintained for 72 hours, aims to cool the brain to a target temperature of 33°C to 34°C, a few degrees below basal temperature, in order to prevent the continuation of neuronal loss that occurs in the days following brain damage. However, the efficacy, potential benefits, and harms of this treatment method for sudden unexpected postpartum collapse have not yet been sufficiently investigated. This study aims to describe the therapeutic hypothermia procedure and review the current literature on the application of therapeutic hypothermia after sudden unexpected postpartum collapse.