X-Message-Number: 5168
Date: Sun, 12 Nov 1995 23:34:32 -0500 (EST)
From: Ben Best <>
Subject: SCI.CRYONICS -- Ontario Emergency Cardiac Care Symposium

 
    I have recently been certified as a CPR Instructor by the Heart & Stroke
Foundation of Ontario, Canada. This weekend (November 12 & 13) I attended
the 1995 Emergency Cardiac Care Symposium for Ontario. The keynote speaker
was "Pete from Pittsburg" (as he identified himself) -- Dr. Peter Safar
(the "father of CPR" -- his name is pronounced like the beginning of the
word "safari"). 

    In his keynote address, Dr. Safar reviewed the history of CPR (CPCR).
Dr. Safar believes that it is not feasible to expect Advanced Cardiac Life
Support units to be able to reach urban cardiac arrest victims in less than
ten minutes. But a victim cannot tolerate more than 3-5 minutes of 
normothermic ischemia without serious damage to brain cells occuring 
with any attempt to restart brain circulation with current technology. But
ultramicroscopic damage to neurons is not observed in less than one hour
of normothermic no-flow. Using techniques developed in his laboratory he
now believes that victims can be reperfused without brain damage after
normothermic anoxic periods in excess of 10 minutes. Mike Darwin has 
been involved in the same kind of research.

     Since there were 300 people at this conference, and since Dr. Safar
is such a super-star, I did not think I would have an opportunity to talk
to him. Nonetheless, after lunch on Saturday I happened to see him walking
down the hall. The poor fellow was probably on his way to the men's room,
but I introduced myself and asked him about my thought that First Responders
should carry epinephrine injectors for use on cardiac arrests. He 
enthusiastically agreed with me. I began asking him technical questions
about brain ischemia and difficulties with re-perfusion. 

    He liked my questions, evidently, because he pressed me to tell him
about myself. I was fairly forthright about my interest in both CPR and 
cryonics. I told him that Mike Darwin was engaged in research similar to
his. He had met Mike Darwin and was impressed that a person with such a
modest formal education could be so knowledgable. He said that he 
favored the research, but he did not believe cryonics should be marketed
before it had been made workable.

   I gave Dr. Safar my rap about molecular repair technology and gave him
my personal testimonial about appreciating the opportunity to bet my life
on future technology. He said that the conditions under which people die
are so destructive of cerebral tissue that molecular reconstruction would
not be possible. I replied that this depends upon the circumstances of 
death -- and that we should be careful about making too many presumptions
about the capability of future technology. We parted company so Dr. Safar
could attend a session on Stroke by a Toronto neurologist.

   I did not think Dr. Safar would show-up for the Sunday morning 
presentations, but he did. I greeted him as he entered the conference-hall
and he was quite friendly. I somehow overcame my shy&retiring habits of 
personality and managed to sit myself next to him at the front table. This
gave me a certain amount of time to ask questions and chat with him. 

   Aside from the technical details of our conversations, I asked him 
how long he would like to live under conditions in which he could retain
good mental function and health. The gist of his answer is that he is not
very religious and that he would like to continue his work for a very long
time. He raised the population question, but he liked my answer about 
the wisdom of unaging brains being a precious resource & the value of 
birth control.

    We exchanged business cards and I told him I would send him a copy 
of my article on the mechanisms of aging. He said he looked forward to
receiving it. I will send him a copy of the Summer issue of CANADIAN
CRYONICS NEWS and the July issue of CRYOCARE REPORT.

                          -- Ben Best


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