Massachusetts Personal Injury Library
Scientists Study What Causes Heat Stroke
Scientists are studying the causes of heat stroke and heat exhaustion, in an attempt to understand why some people suffer from these ailments and others don’t, according to The New York Times.
According to the article, scientists still do not understand what causes heat stroke, dehydration, and heat exhaustion, or why some people suffer from these conditions even when they are hydrated and the weather is overcast or not really hot.
August is prime season for heat illnesses
The Times article said that Douglas Casa, at the Department of Kinesiology at the University of Connecticut, has studied athletic performance in the heat and found that August is a prime season for these illnesses.
Heat illness actually is a range of seven or eight different conditions, from mild heat exhaustion to life-threatening heat stroke.
The Times article described a 2007 position paper from the American College of Sports Medicine that describes heat illness caused by exercising that raises the core body temperature by two degrees every five minutes. According to the paper that heat needs to be removed from the body in some way, and is affected by outside sunlight and high temperatures, as well as humidity. Apparently, the body’s internal temperature as well as the body’s acclimation to high temperatures and humidity also have an affect on whether you suffer from heat illness.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) facts on heat illnesses.
Additional factors that affect the body's ability to cool itself:
- youth (age 0-4)
- obesity
- fever
- dehydration
- heart disease
- mental illness
- poor circulation
- sunburn
- prescription drug use
- alcohol use
Babies and children up to four years of age, people 65 years of age and older, people who are overweight, and people who are ill or on certain medications are at the highest risk of heat illness.
Heat stroke– the most serious heat-related illness; occurs when the body becomes unable to control its temperature: the body's temperature rises rapidly, the sweating mechanism fails, and the body is unable to cool down. Body temperature may rise to 106°F or higher within 10 to 15 minutes. Heat stroke can cause death or permanent disability if emergency treatment is not provided.
Warning signs of a heat stroke:
- an extremely high body temperature (above 103°F)
- Red, hot, and dry skin (no sweating)
- Rapid, strong pulse
- Throbbing headache
- Dizziness
- Nausea
- Confusion
- Unconsciousness
Instructions - Have someone call for immediate medical assistance while you begin cooling the victim:
- Get the victim to a shady area.
- Cool the victim rapidly–immerse the victim in a tub of cool water; place the person in a cool shower; spray the victim with cool water from a garden hose; sponge the person with cool water; or if the humidity is low, wrap the victim in a cool, wet sheet and fan him or her vigorously.
- Monitor body temperature and continue cooling efforts until the body temperature drops to 101-102°F.
- If emergency medical personnel are delayed, call the hospital emergency room for further instructions.
- Do not give the victim alcohol to drink.
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