BrainCool AB will participate in a new high-tech project together with Karolinska Institutet and the University of Michigan in the United States. The project concerns an animal-based clinical study for the treatment of the most severely ill heart patients, those with cardiac arrest who do not respond to cardiopulmonary resuscitation (so-called refractory cardiac arrest). During the treatment, a new concept will be studied to protect the brain and heart in connection with cardiac arrest. ECMO devices are used to establish artificial circulation during the period when the heart is not beating, in combination with rapid and early cooling of the brain and heart using BrainCool's product RhinoChill® System. Despite ECMO's proven ability to save lives after cardiac arrest, many patients still experience severe brain injuries. Further research is needed to explore RhinoChill® System's potential neuroprotective effects in this context, potentially enhancing patient outcomes as a complementary strategy.

ECMO is an advanced type of heart and lung machine where you oxygenate the blood outside the body, and you can then also cool down the body very effectively. ECMO is used as a life-saving treatment for severe heart and lung failure. In the United States, approximately 400,000 people suffer from cardiac arrest every year, a large proportion of whom are very difficult to treat as the cardiac arrest cannot be reversed. The clinical study intends to test and measure the benefits of combining ECMO and cooling with the RhinoChill® System regarding neurological function after a cardiac arrest. Treatment with ECMO will only start in hospital after an hour or more, but the RhinoChill® System will be initiated within 20 minutes of the cardiac arrest, which can lead to a reduction in brain damage but also a faster recovery of the heart.

The medical department at the University of Michigan is leading the project, which highlights a very important clinical question, i. e. the protective effect of very early cooling of the brain and heart in connection with cardiac arrest. Funding from the National Institute of Health in the United States (NIH) contributes to the study, which is a well-reputed government institution that distributes research funds in which Karolinska Institutet, which conducts clinical research in the field, is a co-applicant and will participate in the study.

CEO Martin Waleij comments:
"It is an honor and prestigious for BrainCool to be asked to participate in a high-tech project with ECMO and it strengthens our profile as a company at the forefront of technology in medical cooling. It also opens up new business opportunities with suppliers of ECMO machines, which are being implemented at a rapid pace around the world."

NIH is funding the clinical study and it does not incur any costs for BrainCool. On the other hand, BrainCool receives approximately SEK 250,000 for deliveries of the RhinoChill® System. The project is planned to start in the autumn of 2024 and be completed in 2025.