Cerebral autoregulation during moderate hypothermia in rats.

Abstract

Different PaCO2 management schemes used during hypothermia may have profound effects on cerebral blood flow and on autoregulation. If PaCO2 is maintained at 40 mm Hg after correction for temperature, autoregulation is abolished. If uncorrected PaCO2 is maintained at approximately 40 mm Hg, some degree of autoregulation is preserved, albeit with a right-shifted "knee."