Doctors 'Freeze' Baby to Save Newborn's Life in Novel Treatment

"Freezing" a baby wouldn't normally be a good idea, but doctors had to take the drastic measure in order to stabilize the child's heart. Delivered at just 35 weeks, baby Edward was born with supraventricular tachycardia, leaving him with just a five percent chance at survival.

The condition, supraventricular tachycardia, involves an abnormal fast heart rhythm that starts in the upper chambers, or the atria, of the heart. While normally the heart's electrical system controls the rate of heart beats, a patient with this condition has abnormal electrical function which causes the heart to beat far too fast. People with this condition can have a heart that beats faster than 100 beats per minute, which can skyrocket up to as much as 300 beats per minute. Although the condition is present at birth, symptoms may not occur until the teens or early 20s--some with the condition may never even experience symptoms.

Edward was born at the University College of London hospital with a heart that raced at over 300 beats per minute. In order to combat the condition, doctors lowered the baby's body temperature to 91 degrees in order to slow his heart beat and increase his chances of survival. After four days, his heart rate finally went back to a normal range and doctors slowly warmed him back up to 98.6 degrees.

The decision for doctors to cool the baby was considered a pioneering treatment. Yet the cold has some novel ways for helping children survive extreme conditions. For example, there have been cases where children have fallen into frozen streams or rivers and have been pulled out as much as 45 minutes after "drowning."  Since the cold slows the body's metabolism, this treatment could be used to help in future cases.

In total, the baby spent a month at the hospital. Now, baby Edward is happily home with his parents, Claire and Phillip Ives.