Gourt > Health > Conditions and Diseases > Wounds and Injuries > Hypothermia
Hypothermia is a medical condition in which the victim's core body temperature has dropped to significantly below normal and normal metabolism begins to be impaired. This begins to occur when the core temperature drops below 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit). If body temperature falls below 32 °C (90 °F), the condition can become critical and eventually fatal. Body temperatures below 27 °C (80 °F) are almost uniformly fatal, though body temperatures as low as 14 °C (57.5 °F) have been known to be survivable. The opposite condition, where temperature is too high, is hyperthermia.
For unknown reasons, people who fall critically unconscious in very cold water can, in rare cases, be resuscitated, even though they would be expected to have died of drowning and/or hypothermia. See Mammalian diving reflex.
Types
There are three types of hypothermia, acute, subacute, and chronic.
- Acute hypothermia is the most dangerous; the body temperature drops very swiftly, often in a matter of minutes, such as when a victim falls through an ice-covered lake.
- Subacute hypothermia occurs on a scale of hours, most commonly by remaining in a cold environment for an extended period of time.
- Chronic hypothermia is typically caused by an underlying disease.
Heat Related :: Wounds and Injuries
@escapetochengdu RT @SOME_DC Two homeless men died on the street last week - please call the hypothermia hotline if someone needs shelter 8
nellDC (Nell Orscheln) Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:53:42 -0000
@escapetochengdu RT @SOME_DC Two homeless men died on the street last week - please call the hypothermia hotline if someone needs shelter 8
RT @SOME_DC: Two homeless men died on the street last week - please call the hypothermia hotline if someone needs shelter 8005357252 htt ...
DSchnell (DSchnell) Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:53:29 -0000
RT @SOME_DC: Two homeless men died on the street last week - please call the hypothermia hotline if someone needs shelter 8005357252 htt ...
RT @SOME_DC: Two homeless men died on the street last week - please call the hypothermia hotline if someone needs shelter 8005357252 htt ...
MMonides (Maimonides) Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:51:34 -0000
RT @SOME_DC: Two homeless men died on the street last week - please call the hypothermia hotline if someone needs shelter 8005357252 htt ...
@eenbean they'll be more than blocksicles...they'll be in the hospital with hypothermia. that's crazy...i just want to be in the building!
divadenice (Denice) Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:49:32 -0000
@eenbean they'll be more than blocksicles...they'll be in the hospital with hypothermia. that's crazy...i just want to be in the building!
It's a scorcher in the north today. It's actually above zero. Hypothermia who? Yay. =)
TheeJoelle (Joelle Poitra) Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:47:26 -0000
It's a scorcher in the north today. It's actually above zero. Hypothermia who? Yay. =)
Two homeless men died on the street last week - please call the hypothermia hotline if someone needs shelter 8005357252 http://bit.ly/5dHqpw
SOME_DC (So Others Might Eat) Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:38:36 -0000
Two homeless men died on the street last week - please call the hypothermia hotline if someone needs shelter 8005357252 http://bit.ly/5dHqpw
Cold Water Near Drowning Guidelines - Guidelines developed for use by prehospital, clinic and hospital personnel in dealing with cold injuries. By the State of Alaska.
SARBC Hypothermia Page - Information about Hypothermia, what it is, how it affects you and its treatment. By the Search and Rescue Society of British Columbia.
Accidental Hypothermia - Covers recognition and treatment; discusses incidents not normally expected, such as the elderly in their homes. By National Institute of Health.
Balancing hypoxia and hypothermia in cold-submerged frogs - Many animals respond to hypoxic stress by selecting cooler environments, the so-called 'behavioural hypothermia' response.
BBC News: Hypothermia: The facts - News article: Exposure to the cold is estimated to cause 30,000 deaths a year in the UK.
Meta Description: [ Exposure to the cold is estimated to cause 30,000 deaths a year in the UK. Hypothermia is one of the most deadly cold-induced conditions. ]
Chamonix Hospital Cold Injury Page - Research, evaluation, prevention and information in Mountain Medicine and Traumatology. By Mountain Medicine and Traumatology Department of Chamonix Hospital.
Cold Weather Camping and First Aid - Cold weather comfort and safety.
Cold Weather Precautions: Preventing Hypothermia - Tips for preventing hypothermia.
eMedicine Health - Frostbite - Consumer health resource center providing information on the causes, symptoms, and treatment.
Meta Description: [ Frostbite occurs when tissues freeze. This condition happens when you are exposed to temperatures below the freezing point of skin. The condition has long been recognized. A 5000-year-old pre-Columbian mummy ... ]
eMedicine Health - Hypothermia - Consumer health resource center providing information on the causes, symptoms, and treatment.
Meta Description: [ Hypothermia is defined as a core, or internal, body temperature of less than 95 degrees F (35 degrees C). The tragic tales of people falling into icy lakes are poignant ... ]
Frostbite - Provides general information, symptoms, and treatment on frostbite. From Survive Outdoors Inc.
Georgia Farm Bureau Safety: Hypothermia - When you hear about hypothermia, you usually envision someone stranded in a terrible winter storm. However, hypothermia can occur when it's wet, windy and up to 50 or 60 degrees Fahrenheit. This condition is most common in cold weather, but infants and the elderly can develop hypothermia at temperatures greater than 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
H.E.L.P. and Huddle: Cold Water Survival - Image illustrates techniques to prolong life in cold water.
Heat Capacity, Body Temperature, and Hypothermia - Discussion of how water affects the ease with which victims become hypothermic. University of Colorado at Denver, Chemistry Department.
Heat Loss: Losing it 5 Ways - Image illustrating 5 ways the body loses heat.
Hypothermia - State of Alaska - Cold Injuries and Cold Water Near Drowning Guidelines. Extensive information.
Meta Description: [ The patient with severe hypothermia must be handled very gently, a cold heart is very prone to cardiac arrest. Even cautious movement of the patient may induce cardiac arrest. ]
Hypothermia and Near Drowning - Outlines of diagnosis, early treatment and management of the diver with hypothermia and near-drowning. From Diving Medicine Online.
Meta Description: [ Outlines of diagnosis, early treatment and management of the diver with hypothermia and near-drowning. ]
Hypothermia Prevention, Recognition and Treatment - Hypothermia Prevention, Recognition and Treatment. Articles, protocols and research on the life-saving skills of keeping hypothermia victims alive by core rewarming techniques.
Meta Description: [ Hypothermia Prevention, Recognition and Treatment. Articles, protocols and research on the life-saving skills of keeping hypothermia victims alive by core rewarming techniques. ]
Hypothermia Rescue - Hypothermia protocol by Charlottesvile-Albemarle (Virginia) Rescue Squad.
Hypothermia Tool Box - Presentation outline. Gives warning signs, first aid and prevention for hypothermia.
Hypothermia Treatment Technology Web-Site - Hypothermia treatment should start in the field by rewarming victims with equipment supplying warm humidified air or oxygen and warm IV-fluids to minimize core-temperature afterdrop.
Meta Description: [ Hypothermia treatment starts in the field with hypothermia equipment supplying warm humidified air or oxygen and warm IV-fluids to minimize core-temperature afterdrop. ]
Hypothermia: Treatment in the Field/Hospital - Image illustrating body temperature vs symptoms and body temperature vs treatment.
Information on Hypothermia - Providing thorough information on hypothermia as well as treatment in the wilderness. Provided by Survive Outdoors Inc.
Keep Cold-Weather Gear Ready in Home and Car - Even though most of the US has been visited by a mild season thus far, it's inevitable that more typical winter weather will eventually find us. Now would be a good time to prepare our homes and vehicles.
Meta Description: [ Even though most of the US has been visited by a mild season thus far, its inevitable that more typical winter weather will eventually find us. Now would be a good time to prepare our homes and vehicles.
]
MacScouter Winter Camping and Hypothermia - Hypothermia information compiled from various sources and authors by Chuck Bramlet.
Management of Hypothermia - Management of hypothermia in a clinical setting. Much of the information is also useful in the field. By John Hickey.
Mountain Medicine - Links to information on cold and high-altitude injuries.
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NOLS Wilderness First Aid: Cold Injuries - An excerpt from the book, NOLS Wilderness First Aid. Includes the physiology of temperature regulation, prevention and treatment of cold injuries (hypothermia, frostbite, immersion foot).
Ol' Buffalo Cold Weather Camping - Essay on camping comfortably in cold weather. Covers recognition and treatment of hypotermia and frostbite. Written by Alaskan who was trained in arctic survival skills by the US Air Force and the Alaska Army National Guard.
Meta Description: [ Tips for safe and enjoyable caming in winter and cold weather. ]
Outdoor Action Guide to Hypothermia and Cold Weather Injuries - Traveling in cold weather conditions can be life threatening. When going into cold conditions it is your responsibility to learn the latest information. By Princeton University.
Outdoor Action Winter Activities Home Page - Guide to outdoor activities in winter: winter camping, Cross-country and Telemark skiing, snowshoeing, and winter first aid. By Princeton University.
REI: Dealing With Temperature Extremes - Human miscalculations during surges or drops in temperature may leave you vulnerable to weather-related injury or illness. The savvy wilderness traveler needs to know how to react when weather conditions move outside a human's customary comfort zone.
RES-Q Products Inc. - Protocols and Publications - Index of articles relating to recognition, prevention and treatment of hypothermia.
Meta Description: [ RES-Q Products Inc. - Protocols & Publications ]
Rural Family Medicine - Links to useful sites on cold-weather injuries.
Spinal Cord Injury and Hypothermia - Because of spinal cord injury, the temperature of the body has an increased tendency to fluctuate according to the temperature of the environment.
Staying Safe Outdoors in Winter Weather - Exposure to cold temperatures can cause serious or life-threatening health problems. To stay safe, you should know what to do if a cold-weather health emergency arises.
Meta Description: [ Exposure to cold temperatures can cause serious or life-threatening health problems. To stay safe, you should know what to do if a cold-weather health emergency arises.
]
Troop 98 Winter Camping Tips - Tips for safe winter camping. Winter camping is a lot of fun, but it presents some subtle dangers. Winter camping, if not prepared, is dangerous even when sleeping.
Warning Signs of Hypothermia - Image illustrating hypothermia symptoms.
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Winter Camping Manual - Tips on selecting and using equipment for safe and comfortable winter camping.
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