Surviving 20 Hours of Critical Avalanche Burial and a Core Temperature of 22.5 °C.
Wilderness Environ Med
; 35(1): 94-99, 2024 03.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38379467
ABSTRACT
A 24-year-old male snowboarder was buried in an avalanche for 20â
h and rescued on the next day at a depth of 2.3â
m below the snow surface. A large air pocket was noted in front of his mouth and nose. He was responsive but moved restlessly and uncoordinatedly. The epitympanic temperature was 22.5 °C. He was bradycardic (35/min), and a right bundle branch block with Osborn waves was noted. Rewarming (1 °C/h) was initiated with continuous hemodialysis; core temperature raised to 29.8 °C within 4â
h. At 30 °C he became conscious. With rewarming, the heart rate increased to 90 beats per minute and the ECG changes disappeared; nonfreezing cold injuries were noted. On the next day, his pulmonary function deteriorated-fluid overload of 9 L since admission was diagnosed. With spontaneous diuresis, the situation improved. On Day 4, the neurologist reported subtle polyneuropathy in both legs secondary to hypothermia, without tendency to regress. This case occurred more than 20 years ago but has not been reported yet. To this day, this is the third-longest critical avalanche burial ever reported. We discuss the circumstances of this accident, the clinical course, and how treatment has changed since 2000.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Avalanche
/
Lesão por Frio
Limite:
Adult
/
Humans
/
Male
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Wilderness Environ Med
Assunto da revista:
SAUDE AMBIENTAL
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Áustria