Environmental Emergencies Flashcards
What are the 5 different ways the body can loose heat?
- Radiation: heat lost from air
- Convection: heat lost through the movement of air
- Conduction: heat lost from host to solid objects
- Evaporation: heat loss through sweating
- Respiration: Loss of heat through breathing
When can a patient become hypothermic? Is the onset fast or slow? What must the weather conditions be for a patient to become hypothermic? Who are at the highest risk?
- When the **body temperature becomes lower than 95*F **(35*C)
- It can develop gradually or rapidly
- Weather does not have to be freezing
- **Elderly patients, infants, ill, or injured **
What are the S/S of mild hypothermia?
- Shivering
- Rapid pulse and respirations
- Red, pale cyanotic skin
What are the S/S of severe hypothermia?
- Shivering stops
- Muscular activity decreases
- Lethargy/apathy
- ALOC
- Bradychardia and hypotension
- Dilated pupils
- Eventually All muscular activity stops
What happens when the Core temperature is less than 80*F? What should you never assume about a patient whose core temperature is below 80*F?
- Patient may appear dead(or in coma)
- Never assume a cold, pulseless patient is dead
What is the treatment for hypothermia?
- Handle gently
- Remove from environment
- High flow oxygen
- Warming measures
- Ambulance should be heated (86+ degrees)
*Goal is to prevent furthr heat loss*
What are the S/S of frostbite?
- White, cold, hard, waxy skin
- Painful or painless
- May have blisters or swelling
- _Common locations: _
- feet, hands, nose, ears
What is the treatment for frostbite?
- Remove from cold
- High flow O2
- Passive rewarming
- Do not massage
- Do not break blisters
What are some heat emergencies?
- Heat cramps
- Heat exhaustion
- Heat stroke
What are heat cramps? What are some symptopms?
- Depletion of body salts
- -muscle spasms of leg and abdomen
- history of exertion with no salt intake
What are the treatments for heat cramps?
- Remove from environment
- PO isotonic solution (if available)
What is heat exhaustion? what are the symptoms?
- Dehydration with a loss of salt
- Cold, moist, ashen skin
- Thirsty
- Headaches & nasuea
- Weakness, dizziness, syncope
How do you treat heat exhaustion?
- Remove patient from environment
- Loosen clothing
- High flow O2
- Oral fluids (isotonic or water)
- Position of comfort
- Transport
What is heat stroke? What are the symptoms?
- Failure of body’s cooling mechanism
- -Hot, dry, flushed skin
- ALOC
- Hypotensive - tachycardia - -Seizure
What is the treatment for heat stroke?
- Remove from environment
- No oral fluids
- High flow oxygen
- Cooling measures
- Shock position PRN
- Rapid transport
What are possible water accidents?
- Drowning/ near drowning
-
Diving injuries
-air embolusm
-bends or decompression sickness
What are S/S of Near drowning?
- History of underwater episode
- Dyspnea
- Tachypnea
- Laryngospasms
- ALOC
- Apnea & Cyanosis
WHat is the treatment for near drowning?
- ABC’s
- Aggressive suctioning
- Ventilating with 100% oxygen
- C-spine precautions
- Rapid transport
_*Always transport even when patient looks fine as there may be delayed complications*_
What causes an air embolism? What are the symptoms?
- Caused by holding breath while ascending. Air bubbles are forced into blood stream
-
-Mottled skin
* *-Froth at nose/mouth
- Dizziness, headache**
* *-Confusion or ALOC
- Chest pain**
* *-Dyspnea
- Pain**
* *-Neuro deficits
- Cardiac arrest**
What is decopmression sickness? What are the symptoms?
- Formation of nitrogen bubbles in blood stream
- -Joint pain
- Abdominal pain
- Itching
- Vertigo, nausea, vomiting
How do you treat air embolism and decompression sickness?
- ABC’s
- High flow oxygen
- Left lateral trendelenberg
- Rapid transport
- Transport to hyperbaric chamber
- Consider treatment for hypothermia
