In hypothermia-associated arrest, which statement is true about asystole management?

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When the body is profoundly cold, the priority in arrest is to keep perfusion going while actively raising the core temperature. Cold slows metabolism and can depress electrical activity, but it doesn’t eliminate the chance of recovery if warming occurs. Therefore chest compressions and ventilations should be continued, and active rewarming pursued as soon as possible—ideally with both external warming and internal methods, and advanced options like ECMO if available. As the patient warms, the heart’s electrical activity may resume and circulation can improve, which is why prognosis may get better with sufficient rewarming.

Defibrillation and rapid shocks are not reliably effective at very low temperatures; electrical therapy becomes more likely to work as warming progresses. Hypothermia can cause or accompany asystole, not prevent it, and rewarming remains a necessary part of care. So the best approach is to sustain CPR while aggressively rewarming, recognizing that the outcome can improve with adequate warming.