Posted: 7/19/2017
Parkland provides tips to avoid heat exhaustion, heat stroke
Extreme Texas heat plagues Dallas during the summer months with temperatures often soaring in excess of 100 degrees Fahrenheit. That combined with strenuous physical activity and high humidity can be a recipe for danger, according to Parkland Health & Hospital System physicians.
From 1999 to 2010, 7,415 deaths in the United States, an average of 618 per year, were associated with exposure to excessive natural heat, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Since 2015, Parkland Memorial Hospital has treated more than 70 patients with heat-related diagnoses in its emergency department.
“Even short periods of high temperatures can cause serious health problems. Doing too much on a hot day, spending too much time in the sun or staying too long in an overheated place can cause heat-related illnesses,” said Alexander Eastman, MD, MPH, Medical Director and Chief of the Rees-Jones Trauma Center at Parkland and Assistant Professor of Surgery at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. “Although the first thought often goes to those who work in construction or on highway or landscape crews, first responders are also at risk for heat-related illnesses.”
Temperatures inside firefighting gear can reach well above what the body can normally tolerate; and the circumstances under which it’s being worn can exponentially impact the amount of fluid the body will lose during exertion.
“Firefighters aren’t afforded the luxury of knowing when, or for how long, they’ll be required to work in the elements; and for that reason Dallas Fire-Rescue encourages proactive measures such as constant hydration, ensuring an available water supply and cooling measures on units as well as a buddy system for accountability,” said David Coatney, Fire Chief, Dallas Fire-Rescue.
Heat exhaustion occurs when people are exposed to high temperatures and when the body loses fluids and becomes dehydrated. When heat exhaustion elevates, it may result in heat stroke, a life-threatening medical condition occurring when the body’s cooling system, which is controlled by the brain, stops working. The resulting high body temperature causes damage to internal organs, including the brain, and could result in death.
Symptoms of heat stroke include thirst; red, warm and dry skin; body temperature over 104 degrees Fahrenheit; fast breathing and heart rate; vomiting; muscle cramps; confusion or disorientation and coma.
“If you see any of the warning signs of heat stroke, you may be dealing with a life-threatening emergency,” Dr. Eastman cautioned. “Have someone call 911 for immediate medical assistance while you begin cooling the victim.”
Dr. Eastman offered the following tips to help a heat stroke victim before medical assistance arrives:
• Get the victim to a shady area
• Cool the victim rapidly using whatever methods you can, but avoid an ice bath. For example, 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 degrees Fahrenheit
• Do not give the victim fluids to drink
• If there is vomiting, make sure the airway remains open by turning the victim on his or her side.
For additional information, visit www.parklandhospital.com.