Hydrogen Gas Helps Heart Attack Survivors Recover Brain Function
Feasibility and Safety of Hydrogen Gas Inhalation for Post-Cardiac Arrest Syndrome – First-in-Human Pilot Study
Research hubs: Cardiovascular System · Brain & Nervous System
- Evidence type
- Uncontrolled trial (single-arm or pilot) · Human study
- Authors
- Tomoyoshi Tamura, Kei Hayashida, Motoaki Sano, Masaru Suzuki, Takayuki Shibusawa, Joe Yoshizawa, Yosuke Kobayashi, Takeshi Suzuki, Shigeo Ohta, Hiroshi Morisaki, Keiichi Fukuda, Shingo Hori
- Journal
- Circulation Journal
- Year
- 2016
- PMID
- 27334126
- Study Type
- Human
- Participants
- 5
- Delivery
- Gas
- Duration
- 3 months
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Cited by
- 82 (OpenAlex, as of November 2026)
- Country
- Japan
TL;DR
Breathing in hydrogen gas, along with controlled body temperature management, could be a safe treatment for patients recovering from sudden cardiac arrest outside of a hospital, with most patients showing good brain function after three months.
Key Finding
Hydrogen gas inhalation combined with cooling therapy was safe in cardiac arrest patients, with 80% (4 of 5) surviving 90 days with favorable neurological outcomes.
Summary
This small pilot study tested whether inhaling hydrogen gas could be safe and helpful for 5 patients who had suffered cardiac arrest (when the heart stops beating) and were also receiving cooling treatment to protect their brains. The researchers found no harmful effects from the hydrogen gas, and 4 of the 5 patients survived 90 days after treatment with good brain function recovery.
Practical Takeaway
This is a very early, small human study that suggests hydrogen gas inhalation may be worth investigating further for cardiac arrest patients. However, with only 5 patients and no comparison group, it's too preliminary to draw conclusions about whether hydrogen actually improves outcomes or if the good results were due to other factors. Much larger studies would be needed before this could become standard treatment.
Abstract (excerpt)
Background: Hydrogen gas inhalation (HI) ameliorates cerebral and cardiac dysfunction in animal models of post-cardiac arrest syndrome (PCAS). HI for human patients with PCAS has never been studied.Methods and Results:Between January 2014 and January 2015, 21 of 107 patients with out-of-hospital…