Cooling of body parts may result in various
cold injuries (A) nonfreezing injuries, (B) freezing injuries and (C) HYPOTHERMIA which
is the most serious. Nonfreezing cold injuries include chilblain, immersion
foot and trenchfoot. Frostnip and frostbite are freezing injuries.
Toes, fingers, ears and nose are at
greatest risk because these areas do not have major muscles to produce heat. In
addition, the body will preserve heat by favouring the internal organs and thus
reducing the flow of blood to the extremities under cold conditions. Hands and
feet tend to get cold more quickly than the torso because:
- they lose heat more rapidly since they have a higher surface
area-to-volume ratio, and
- they are more likely to be in contact with colder surfaces than
other parts of the body.
If the eyes are not protected with goggles
in high wind chill conditions, the corneas of the eyes may freeze.
The most severe cold injury is hypothermia
which occurs from excessive loss of body heat and the consequent lowering of
the inner core temperature (internal temperature of the body). Hypothermia can
be fatal.
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