Here’s a timely test for all  Minnesotans: What are the signs of frostbite? What do you do to treat it?  How cold does your body have to get before hypothermia sets in and you literally start freezing to death?

 Here are the answers to today’s pop quiz, courtesy of Dr. Doug Brunette an emergency room physician at Hennepin County Medical Center.

Frostbite: Your skin literally freezes.

 What it looks like: Frozen skin. It becomes hard and pale, and red and painful as it thaws.  When you get cold, your body responds by not sending blood to the extremities in order to preserve your core temperature.   In a -30 degree wind chill skin freezes after only a few minutes. Skin dies in two ways: At the time of the exposure and because of the lack of oxygen. 

What to do:  Immerse affected areas in warm water, about 102 degrees.   Get medical help if sores and blisters develop.   Â
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Hypothermia: You are literally freezing.

What it looks like:  Shivering, slurred speech, very slow breathing, pale cold skin, and fatigue.  Hypothermia becomes fatal when core temperatures get too low causing cardiac and respiratory failure.
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What to do: Medical help should be called immediately.  Remove the person from the cold, remove wet clothing, insulate the person’s body from the cold ground, monitor breathing, share body heat, and provide a warm, nonalcoholic beverage if a person is able to swallow.

What not to do:  Do not apply direct heat, massage the person, or provide alcoholic beverages. That could cause cardiac arrest.

 For those who haven’t lived here long enough to know, here are the ever sensible cold weather tips:

1. Always dress for the weather, being sure to cover ears, nose, face, and head at all times.Â
2. Wear mittens instead of gloves
3. Wear two pairs of socks and waterproof shoes to keep feet warm.Â
4. Clothes should fit loosely to avoid a decrease in the amount of blood supplied to legs and arms.Â
5. Do not smoke or drink because it can affect your body’s blood circulation.Â
6. Always travel with a friend incase help would be needed or something would happen.
7. Pay attention to the “real feel” temperature.  This temperature factors in the wind chill, which may be much lower than the reported air temperature.
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This entry was posted on Monday, December 15th, 2008 at 1:03 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.