Hypothermic asanguineous circulatory arrest in adult dogs.

A new technique for the institution of hypothermic asanguineous circulatory arrest (HACA) is described and evaluated. It employs rapid cooling and hemodilution at high flow rates. Survival and protection of neurologic and other organ function were obtained using asanguineous circulatory arrest, and the method appears to be an improvement over circulatory arrest using conventional methods for cooling. The total duration of extracorporeal circulation is much shorter than with currently used methods of circulatory arrest. Applications of this technique in general and transplantation surgery as well as cardiac surgery are discussed.