Winters coming

[Paul]

And yet again I'm beefing up the car cold weather kit and first aid kit for winter.

Cold injuries can hit us all in every sort of outside activity so I'd like to share this load of information with you:-

DISCLAIMER:
I am not a medical professional.
You must check with a qualified person that the information I have written is correct.
I shall not be held responsible as you should have checked before using any of the methods listed below.

This is a list of cold injuries and basic treatment from various sources round the Internet.

Cold or Chilled Skin
Your skin feels normal, but painful and red.
First Aid, get out of the cold and any wet clothing.
Carefully dry the area, elevate the limb covering it with loose warm clothing and warm it with natural body heat.
DON’T SCRATCH.

Frost Nip
Your skin has a little sensation, and feels waxy with the top layer hard or rubbery.
The deeper tissue is still soft, and it looks white.
First Aid, Immerse the affected area in warm water 37.5 Celsius (100 F) to thaw out the frozen tissue.
If you can’t use hot water, then use body heat.
DON’T RUB THE SKIN.
Never use heat pads or stoves / fireplaces.
Heating has to be slow and gentle and all over.
CAUTION:
The skin is VERY susceptible to refreezing for at least 24 hours.

Frostbite
Your skin feels numb, it feels numb and wooden and frozen to the bone. It also looks waxy and white.

THIS IS EXTREMELY HARD TO TREAT IN THE FIELD.
IF YOU CAN, GET TO A HOSPITAL.

Do not let the skin touch anything cold or hot.
Treatment of frostbite is re-warming / thawing the affected tissue.
Only rewarm if you can keep warm.
If you re-freeze a frost-bitten limb, the damage will be much worse.
NEVER RUB OR MASSAGE FROZEN SKIN.

Warming can be done in two ways:

Using body heat or a warm room temperature to aid the person’s body in re-warming itself.
Wrap the whole body up in blankets not just the frozen bit.

Active re-warming warms the injured tissue as quickly as possible without burning.
The faster things are warmed, the less damage.
Use a warm water bath between 40-42 Celsius (104-108 F).

CAUTION.
The core body temperature may drop and cause heart failure.
Dead tissue may need surgical intervention.

I REPEAT, IF YOU CAN GET TO A HOSPITAL DON’T TRY TO TREAT THIS INJURY.

Freezing of Cornea.
Caused by forcing the eyes open during strong freezing winds without goggles.,
First Aid, Place a warm hand or compress over the closed eye. After re-warming the eyes must be completely covered with patches for 24 – 48 hours.

Eyelashes freezing together
First Aid, Put a warm hand over your eye until the ice melts.

Snow blindness.
Most symptoms occur 8-12 hours after exposure.
Eyes feel dry, irritated, full of sand, moving or blinking becomes painful, ANY light hurts, your eyelids may swell, your eyes will redden and stream.
First Aid, is cold compresses and a dark environment until pain stops.
Do not rub your eyes.
Prevent by wearing full wrap round POLARIZED sun glasses.

Constipation
This is a common condition in a cold environment.
First Aid, is drink plenty of water to prevent dehydration.

Chapped lips
These are caused by a loss of moisture in lip skin.
First Aid, Cover your mouth, don’t lick your lips, drink lots, don’t smoke, stay off coffee and alcohol, and use a lip salve like Vaseline to keep the natural moisture in.

Trench Foot.
Caused by long immersion in water or damp socks.
More Than 6 hours does permanent damage,
More Than 24 hours equals possible loss of a foot.
First Aid, Don’t walk on it. Treat by careful washing and drying of the feet, gentle re-warming and slight elevation. Change into dry socks and boots. NEVER let your boots freeze.