Hypothermia And Hyperthermia

Sometimes when your body temperature drops below 37 hypothermia can occur, which is most commonly due to cold weather. When your body temperature rises above 37 it could be due to the environment which is called hyperthermia. If your temperature rises above the normal body temperature and which is not due to the environment it could be caused by an internal infection or fever, this is called pyrexia.

Hypothyroidism can affect the body temperature because it slows down the metabolism. This causes the energy produced to be less. With that

ii. Hypothermia can cause adverse cardiovascular, hematologic, immunologic, metabolic, and neurologic effects extending acuity and length of stay (Phillips, 2013).

According to the given symptoms (slow, shallow breathing; a slow and weak pulse; shivering and had a short attention span), you are now in the condition of hypothermia. Hypothermia is a medical emergency when your body loses heat faster than it can produce heat and it is usually caused by prolonged exposure to cold temperature. Since you had spent almost 30 hours at sea, this caused your body temperature to drop quickly and that’s the reason why you’re suffering from the listed symptoms.

Malignant Hyperthermia is primarily thought to be an autosomal dominant genetic disorder that causes a hypermetabolic state after administration of volatile anesthetics. When a patient is under anesthesia, the muscles are usually relaxed, but when a patient is experiencing Malignant Hyperthermia crisis, certain IV anesthesia causes the opposite effect. Most inhaled anesthetics other than nitrous oxide, cause or trigger Malignant Hyperthermia. More specifically, the anesthetic agents: Halothane, Chloroform, and Succinylcholine. The genic condition of Malignant Hyperthermia only becomes apparent when a patient is exposed to certain anesthetics such as halothane, which causes muscle rigidity.

This in turn cools and decreases the ability to perform physical activity and thus increases the risk of freezing the tissue. Areas that are limited in blood flow such as the hands, feet, ears and nose are vulnerable to frostbite (Giesbrecht and Wilkerson 19).

The scientific, medical explanation about hyperthermia is that thermal regulation centers around the brain help to maintain the internal body temperature by adjusting the amount of salts in perspiration. Electrolytes help the cells in body tissues maintain water balance. In hot weather, a healthy body will lose enough water to cool the body while creating the lowest level of electrolyte imbalance. If the body loses too much salt and fluid, symptoms of dehydration will occur. The healthy human body keeps a steady temperature of 37 degree Celsius, in hot weather, the body perspires. As perspiration evaporates from the skin, the body is cooled, then the thermal regulating system in the brain helps the body adapt to high temperature.

SOCIAL HX: Any recent travel? If so, where to and for what duration of time? Causes (if recent travel to distant countries) may include Malaria, Viral Hepatitis, Diarrheal disorders, or Typhoid fever (Merck’s Manual, 2014). If recent travel around U.S., causes may include tick exposure (rickettsiosis, Lyme’s disease), mosquito exposure (arboviral encephalitis), wild animal exposure (rabies), fleas (plague), cat-scratch disease or toxoplasmosis, reptiles (salmonella), or bats (rabies) (Merck’s Manual, 2014). Any drug use? Drugs that can cause increased heat production include amphetamines, cocaine, ecstasy, and anesthetics (Merck’s Manuals, 2014).

With prolonged heat exposure the older adult is not able to shed excess heat at an adequate rate. This can result in adverse effects such as heat exhaustion, heat stroke, and exacerbating chronic health conditions. Some things that can be done to help decrease these adverse effects are to educate the older adult on the effects exposure to heat can have, and having the older adult refrain from prolonged heat exposure. Providing the older adult with ways to stay cool while in the heat include, wearing a hat, or a cool wet towel around the neck to aid in the older adult not overheating. Another thing that needs to be assessed is if the patient has air conditioning or a fan to help keep the older adults living environment in a safe temperature during hot days (Kravchenko, Abernethy, Fawzy, & Lyerly,

Sweating starts- The widening of the blood vessels is not enough to let all the heat out and preventing

Malignant hypertension is an inherited condition. It occurs when the patient has a severe reaction caused by being exposed to certain drugs used as a part of the anesthesia for surgical procedures. It can be fatal if it is not treated quickly. In most cases, there are no signs or symptoms until the reaction occurs.

Hyperthyroidism also increases the basal metabolic rate, heat production and oxygen consumption (calorigenic action) of many tissues. Body temperature increases slightly and the patient experiences intolerance to heat. Flushing and sweating are just compensatory

A low body temperature is called hypothermia.When being wet and cold the body loses heat about 25 times faster in water than in air. “People can even develop hypothermia at temperatures above freezing if it's raining”(Can a person freeze to death?).Normal core body temperature is 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, and mild hypothermia sets in at about 95 degrees F.At 91 degrees F, you can experience amnesia,and at 82 degrees you can lose

Malignant hypothermia has many symptoms including bleeding, dark brown urine, low blood pressure, and a rapid heartbeat. Most patients will have the high body temperature of 105-113 Fahrenheit, muscle rigidity and stiffness, muscle pain, and sweating profoundly. These symptoms occur within one hour of the anesthetic or can take up to 12 hours to show. Some complications of MH include amputation, death, kidney failure, abnormal bleeding/blood clotting, swelling of the feet and hands,

What is a Heat Stroke? A heat stroke is when an individual’s body temperature ascends too high and tries to perform the task of cooling off. The body’s way