Hypothermia (Feeling cold, In cold environment, In cold water)
What is it?
Hypothermia occurs when a person’s body temperature drops below 35°C (95°F ) [Normal body temperature is around 37°C (98.6°F )]
The body is either:
Losing too much heat and/or the body’s own heat is not enough to compensate this
One does not have enough fats, the body burns fat to create body heat.
One has low metabolism (persons in cold environments need high fat metabolism to generate body heat).
If ones body is getting cold the following will occur:
Blood flow (blood contains glucose for energy) will reduce to the brain causing cognitive problems and/or impairing concentration.
One is no longer sweating and hair on the body stand up to insulate the body.
Blood pressure will go up [blood vessels changes around the body will occur , the body must keep the core body temperature at 37 degrees (heart and liver) and will restrict blood vessels on the outer parts of body i.e. hands and/or feet hence they feel cold and/or turn white , females are more prone to this due to the hormone oestrogen].
Heart rate will go up and is working harder, as the heart is pumping up against constricted blood vessels (this of particular concern of patients who have underling heart conditions i.e. Angina and heart attack , stroke, blood vessel disorders) and again increase blood pressure.
Blood itself is also becoming thicker leading to blood vessel blockage, this can also lead to worsening blood vessel disorders and increase underlying heart conditions i.e. angina, heart attack, stroke etc
Breathing rate increases and the heart needs more oxygen.
The body needs more fuel to stay warm so one burns more carbs (hence one like to eat hot comfort food!)
Types of hypothermia
Primary hypothermia is when one has good body heat compensation and the speed of hypothermia then depends on:
Age
Insulation (clothing, body fat)
Local weather conditions i.e. rain, windspeed)
Small children (due to limited fat store and high body surface to mass ratio and/or elderly are very vulnerable.
Secondary hypothermia depends on whether one can internally heat their body up efficiently or if have one has an inefficiency in heating their bodies up:
A common type of freezing injury, is defined as the freezing and crystallization of fluids in the interstitial and cellular spaces as a consequence of prolonged exposure to freezing temperatures.
It also may occur when skin is exposed to extreme cold, at times combined with high winds, resulting in vasoconstriction where the blood vessels become narrow)
First-degree frostbite
Central white plaque surrounded by a ring of hyperaemia (blood filled skin)
Mild swelling
Injury looking over the next few weeks include skin peeling, transient swelling and erythema (rose coloured rash), and cold sensitivity.
Second-degree frostbite
Full-thickness skin freezing
Clear blister formation with surrounding erythema (rose coloured rash)
Hard outer skin but resilient tissue underneath
Substantial oedema (swelling)
Blisters contain high amounts of thromboxane and prostaglandins. They contract and dry within 2-3 weeks, forming a dark eschar (black dead tissue) that sloughs off in 4 weeks, leaving poorly keratinized skin that is easily traumatized.
Injury looking skin include burning or prickling sensation, discomfort and persistent or ‘across feeling’ cold sensitivity.
Third-degree frostbite
Subdermal plexus freezing (freezing in deep parts of of the skin where blood vessel are)
Froehlich syndrome (Damage to the hypothalamus, the hypothalamus regulates sleep cycles and body temperature and composition while stimulating the pituitary gland to release a variety of hormones that control growth, metabolism and body development)
High alcohol consumption – Alcohol is a vasodilator, meaning that it opens up peripheral blood vessels and allows blood to flow freely to the surface of the skin and hence removes heat from the body
Move the person indoors or somewhere warm as soon as possible.
Once the person is in a warm environment, carefully remove any wet clothing and dry them.
Wrap them in warm blankets, towels, coats or silver foil blankets (whatever you have available), protecting their head and torso first to retain body heat and prevent heat from their body escaping.
Encourage the person to shiver if they’re capable of doing so.
If possible, give the person warm drinks (not alcohol) or high-energy foods, such as chocolate, to help warm them up. But only do this if they can swallow normally –ask them to cough to see if they can swallow.
Once the person’s body temperature has increased, keep them warm and dry.
It’s important to handle a person with hypothermia gently and carefully.
Things to avoid
Don’t put don’t massage their limbs
Don’t use heating lamps
Don’t give them alcohol to drink
The cold person into a hot bath
Person with a body temperature of 32C or lower will usually stop shivering completely because their metabolism slows down and this reduces heat. Medical emergency, Do not wait phone an ambulance
Moderate hypothermia
Confusion?
Difficulty moving around?
Drowsiness?
Loss of co-ordination?
Loss of judgement and reasoning (someone with hypothermia may decide to remove clothing despite being very cold)?
In an ideal world we’d all heat the room we’re in to at least 18C. When that is not possible, Prof Bailey University of South Wales, says “it’s like preparing for a mountaineering expedition”.
His tips are:
Focus on clothes that provide good insulation such as those made of wool
Gloves and warm socks are more important than a hat (but a woolly hat will help too)
Switch foods to a higher carbohydrate diet
Generate more body heat by moving around and not just sitting in a chair and watching TV.
Please copy and paste any key words from the title: Hypothermia (Feeling cold, In cold environment, In cold water) in the following respective 'Medtick References and/or Sources' to find out more about the disease (this also may include diagnosis tests and generic medical treatments).
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