Therapeutic Hypothermia in Asphyxiated Newborn: Its Applicability, Feasibility and Accessibility in Developing Country India: A Long Way to Go

About four million newborn children die annually. Almost one quarter (23%) of these deaths are caused by perinatal asphyxia, most of them in developing countries [1-3]. The clinical signs following perinatal asphyxia have been called hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). HIE occurs in 1 to 3 per 1,000 live births in high income countries, and up to 20 per 1,000 live births in low and middle-income countries [4]. In addition, perinatal asphyxia causes an even greater number of children to develop neurological sequels. The clinical signs following perinatal asphyxia have been called hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) [5,6]. The onset of the asphyxial event leading to HIE could start antenatally or close to/during birth and the reported incidence of asphyxia with antenatal vs. perinatal onset differs substantially between studies [7,8].