Heat stroke: Symptoms, causes, first aid and how to prevent?

 What is heat stroke?

Heat stroke, also known as a sunstroke is a medical emergency.  Heat stroke is a life-threatening medical condition in which the core body temperature rises up to 104 degree F or more due to the incapability of the body to cope up with the sudden or rapid rise in the temperature in hot climates.  The failure of the body to reduce temperature may result in rapid changes in the body such as unconsciousness, damage to the vital organs or sudden death.

Heat stroke is a severe type of heat injury, caused by extreme temperatures or hyperthermia.  Heat exhaustion, heat stroke, heat syncope all are the types of heat injury or hyperthermia.

Heat stroke commonly occurs during summer seasons when the temperatures are usually high.  Heavy physical exertion in such hot temperatures may lead to heat stroke in some people.  Due to the insufficiency of the body to bring down the temperature to maintain homeostasis of the body, the symptoms such as profuse sweating, confusion and fainting results. 

What are the symptoms of Heat stroke?

Heat stroke affects the different areas of the body. The symptoms of heat stroke are:

Changes in the temperature:  The body temperature rises up to 104 degree Fahrenheit or may be even higher and does not come down suddenly. 

Failure of sweating mechanism of the body: Despite the high temperature, the body does not sweat and so the temperature does not lower down. 

Changes in the vital signs of the person:  The heart beats faster to cope with the emergency. Cardiac workload increases. The pulse of the person remains rapid and shallow, the blood pressure may drop suddenly making the person faint down.  Temperature continues to remain at a higher level. The person breathes rapidly. 

Changes in the skin color: The color of the skin may turn red or dark due to the excess body temperature. it has a flushed appearance. 

Changes in the mental status of the person:  The person may not understand what is going on.  He/She may be confused, unable to react wisely during the heat stroke episode.

Disorientation and staggering speech may be seen.  Seizures, dizziness and fainting may occur.  In most cases the fainting is first observed.  The person may fall unconscious.

Other symptoms:  The person may have a nauseating feel or may vomit out suddenly.  Headaches are also common mostly throbbing types of headache. 

Damage to the vital organs of the body:  If the temperature does not come down it may cause damage to the vital organs such as brain, heart and kidneys.

What are the causes of heat stroke?

The causes of heat stroke can be:

• Overexertion in hot climates: When a person exerts more physically during hot climates, he/she may develop heat stroke. Strenuous physical activity itself raises body temperature and when the person is exposed to the hot climates then he/she may be susceptible to heat stroke.
• Non-exertion in hot climates may also be a cause of heat stroke if the person is weak or elderly or is very sensitive to the sudden or higher temperatures. 

Who are most likely to get heat stroke? 

Heat stroke is most likely to occur in: 

• People who are exposed to hot weather for prolonged hours
• People who are not conditioned or used to tolerating high temperatures
• People who consume more alcohol 
• People who have already have fever and expose them to hot climate
• People who are obese or overweight
• People who are aged or elderly and children as their body is not as much capable of dealing with the temperature regulation in sudden hot weathers
• People who are taking medications for certain health conditions such as heart problems, hypertension, etc. 
• People who are labours exposed to hot weather due to their work
• People who have previous history of heat stroke or any type of heat injury
• People who are dehydrated 
• People who drink less water than what their body requires

What are the common risk factors that may increase the chances of having a heat stroke?

There are certain risk factors that tend to make a person susceptible to develop heat stroke.

Age of the person:  Small aged kids and elderly people do not have enough regulatory mechanisms to deal with the sudden change or rise in the temperature.  So they are susceptible to heat stroke

Lifestyle of the person:  A person who is active has less chances of falling succumb to heat stroke than the one who is sedentary and stays indoor sleeping or sitting.

Body weight:  An obese person may have greater chances to develop heat stroke than a normal bodied person.

Certain health ailments:  A person with pre-existing medical conditions of the lungs or heart and kidneys may develop heat stroke more often than the healthy persons. 

Use of medications: Certain medications may alter the body's ability to regulate the body temperature and or may cause excess water loss such as use of diuretics in heart problems, use of blood pressure medications. When the person taking such medicines is exposed for longer time to hot temperatures, he may develop heat stroke.

Clothing of the person: Tight fitting clothes may interfere with the body's ability to cope up with the higher temperatures and may not provide room for the hot parts to lose excess heat from skin. Some professional artists may require to wear heavy and body-fitting tight costumes for their shoot.  When they are exposed to hot climate, they may have heat stroke.

Consuming alcohol:  Alcohol consumption may also be a risk factor for heat stroke.  Under the effect of alcohol the brain may not be able to regulate the temperature of the body sufficiently leading to heat stroke in hot weather.

Certain occupations:  People employed as daily wage earners,military personnels may be exposed to extreme hot weather conditions due to their work or training. This may develop heat stroke in them. 

What are the complications of heat stroke?

Heat stroke can cause complications if left untreated for a long hours. You can avoid the following complications by giving the first aid to the affected person as soon as possible.

• Damage to the vital organs such as heart, brain., lungs, liver and kidneys. These organs may swell up due to the failure of body to lower the temperature. Some changes may be permanent in these vital organs.
• Neurological damage
• Coma or Death of the affected person.

What is the first aid treatment for heat stroke?

Heat stroke is a medical emergency and so it is important to do first aid treatment before the paramedical help arrives on the spot. Call for the ambulance immediately before initiating the first aid. Ask someone to call while you start the first aid. 

1. Bring the person to a cool, safe, shaded and ventilated place.
2. Remove the outer clothing immediately.
3. Apply cold ice packs or cold clothing pads.
4. Soak the clothing into cool water and put under the armpits, on the head and in the groin. This helps bring down the temperature rapidly.
5. Give cold bath if possible. 
6. If possible start air conditioning or fan on the person's body while you give cold application.
7. Do not crowd the place and let the air move freely around the person
8. Check the pulse and respiration and keep talking to the person.
9. Change the cold compress and re-dip into the cold water and place all over the body or the above told areas of the body.
10. Give him sips of water, if the person is conscious. 

How can be heat stroke diagnosed in the hospital?

The doctor in the emergency asseses the physical symptoms and vital signs of the person with heat stroke and then orders several urgent urine and blood tests to rule out heat stroke.  The doctor may also perform cardiac and renal function tests as well as electrocardiogram to note the electrical activity of the heart. 

Neurological asssessment is done to check the neurologic status of the person.

What is the medical treatment given to the heatstroke patients in the hospitals?

The medical treatment aims at:

• Lowering the body temperature by giving antipyretic infused solutions through intravenous route.
• Starting the intravenous drips to rehydrate the body and supplement the electrolytes and fluid to the body
• Medications to treat and prevent seizures are given
• Anti-emetics medications to stop vomiting may be given to prevent risk of aspiration. 
• Oxygen therapy may be started to ease their breathing and meet body's demand of oxygen. 
• Ice blankets and cold packs are given to bring down the body temperature.

How can we prevent ourselves from heat stroke?

The following measures help us to stay safe and prevent heat stroke:

1. Avoid exposure to hot weather or high temperature:  If possible try to stay indoors or in shaded places when the temperature outside is too hot or high.  Do not stand or sit under direct sun during hot climates for prolonged periods. 
2. Condition yourself to different temperature:  first of all why expose our body to such hot climate but if unavoidable, then you must try to learn and condition your body such that it learns to regulate the temperature. For this, expose yourself slowly and gradually to heat for small periods initially, then increasing it later on.  This may help your body to manage the exposure to hot temperatures without failing.
3. Keep yourself hydrated: Water helps a lot in hot climate. Always carry a water bottle and drink plenty of fluids on your way when travelling to hot and humid places.  
4. Wear light-shaded, loose clothing and always cover your head while exposing yourself to heat or higher temperatures. 
5. Use of umbrella in sunlight helps you from getting direct heat to your head. Always carry your umbrella if your get headaches in summer seasons. 
6. If you are on certain medications for your heart or kidney disease, make sure to travel in car or air-conditioned vehicle during summers.
7. Do not consume alcohol in hot weathers if you are to expose to the hot conditions for more hours.
8. Avoid heavy exertion, especially in the hot climate and breathe in with ease by managing your workouts in cold parts of the day.
9. During summers, try to plan your activities either during early morning hours before noon or after evening begins. The effect of heat then reduces and saves you from heat stroke.
10. Always accompany your kids and senior citizens when travelling to hot places. Never leave them alone and make sure they drink enough of water and fluids to reduce the risk of heat stroke.

Heat stroke or sunstroke can affect anyone. It is a medical emergency that can be reversed if proper first aid is given at the earliest. You can prevent yourself from this heat injury by keeping yourselves indoors or in shaded places during summers and hot climates. Prompt medical care can save the life of the person affected with heat stroke.

Note: This post is for informational and educational purpose only, It is not a substitute to any medical or professional advice or treatment. See your doctor in any case.