Hypothermia and frostbite
Stages, burrito wrap, and what you never do
The 4 stages (Swiss system)
- Stage 1: awake and shivering
- Stage 2: drowsy, shivering has stopped
- Stage 3: unconscious
- Stage 4: no signs of life
- Shivering stopping in the cold = emergency
The hypothermia burrito
- Insulation under the casualty first
- Cut off or wrap up soaked clothing
- Heat to the trunk, never on the limbs
- Vapor barrier, then insulation, then outer shell
- Warm sugary drink if awake and swallowing
What you never do
- Don't rub, don't shake, don't sit them up
- Below 30°C the heart becomes irritable
- No alcohol: it speeds up heat loss
- They aren't dead until they're warm and dead
Frostbite
- Only rewarm if it won't refreeze
- Refreezing causes more damage than prolonged freezing
- You can walk on a frozen foot, not a thawed one
- Water bath at 37-39°C for about 30 minutes sheltered
- Clear blisters: drain; bloody blisters: leave alone
Cold water: the 1-10-1 principle
- 1 minute to control your breathing
- 10 minutes of useful movement left
- 1 hour before losing consciousness
- A drowning person doesn't scream or wave
lostandalive.com/guide/secours · 112 (Europe) · 911 (Amérique du Nord)