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Therapeutic hypothermia (TH) has been shown to improve outcomes in comatose Post-Cardiac Arrest Syndrome (PCAS) patients. It is unclear how long it takes these patients to regain neurologic responsiveness post-arrest. We sought to determine the duration to post-arrest awakening and factors associated with times to such responsiveness.

We performed a retrospective chart review of consecutive TH-treated PCAS patients at three hospitals participating in a US cardiac arrest registry from 2005 to 2011. We measured the time from arrest until first documentation of “awakening”, defined as following commands purposefully.

We included 194 consecutive TH-treated PCAS patients; mean age was 57 ± 16 years; 59% were male; 40% had an initial shockable rhythm. Mean cooling duration was 24 ± 8 h and mean rewarming time was 14 ± 13 h. Survival to discharge was 44%, with 78% of …