Temperature of the spinal cord during local hypothermia in dogs

Abstract

✓ The temperature of the spinal cord parenchyma during local hypothermia was recorded in 18 dogs with and without a 300 to 500 gm-cm spinal cord injury. Other variables included opening the dura, location of the inflow stream, and the use of alcohol bath cooling. In nontraumatized cord, the temperature varied between 5.4° and 23.5°C depending on the location of the inflow stream; the variable range of 10–15 minutes of perfusion to reach these levels was unexpected. Temperatures of the injured cord fell to those of the reservoir (1.0° to 3.8°C) within 2½ minutes. The fact that the temperature of nontraumatized areas two segments cephalad to the injury was also reduced showed the capacity of the cord for thermal conduction. Opening the dura or use of an alcohol bath had little effect on cord temperature. Lack of heat transport due to ischemia is postulated as the primary cause of the rapid reduction of temperature in the injured cord to that of the surrounding environment.