Treatment For Frostbite And Acute Medical Sickness

Acute Mountain Sickness (ACM)

The percentage of oxygen in air decreases with altitude. Breathing it has health consequences, one of which is various forms of AMS. The symptoms range from mild headache and fatigue to dangerous levels of fluid in the lungs or the brain.

High Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE)

In more extreme cases high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE) occurs, making breathing difficult. It can be fatal. High altitude cerebral edema (HACE) is a similar condition in which fluid builds up in the brain rather than (or at the same time) as the lungs. As the brain swells from the increased fluid, pressure rises inside the skull, resulting in impaired judgment and sometimes death.

Simple dizziness even from mild cases can lead to a serious injury or a fatal fall. Insomnia, one of the common results, causes sleep deprivation, producing reduced reflexes and dulled thinking. Nausea is one of the less dangerous results, but even that can lead to dehydration, which is problematic during a climb.

Fevers are not unknown among the cluster of conditions. At the least that can spoil the pleasure of a climb. At high altitudes it can result in permanent harm or even death. Comas are a real possibility.

Take Precations

The risk and the severity of altitude sickness can be curtailed. It occurs when the rate of ascent is more rapid than the body can adjust to. It is more likely at higher elevations, such as above 8,000 feet (2440 m) and when the rate of ascent is greater than about 1,000 feet (328 m) per day.

Taking the climb more slowly, not overexerting and taking plenty of fluids can help. Carrying a small oxygen bottle for supplemental supply can be helpful if used judiciously. Avoid any intake of alcohol in high altitudes, since that will make the condition more likely and worse.

What To Do If Symptoms Occur

Once symptoms occur, taper activity off sharply. Take Acetaminophen for headache, but do not take sleeping pills for insomnia. Be prepared to descend if the situation does not improve quickly. For high mountain climbs, it is often desirable to carry along a portable hyperbaric chamber to simulate lower altitudes as a treatment.

Treatment For Frostbite And What It Is

Frostbite occurs when tissue, usually closer to the skin surface and at the extremities, is damaged by excessive or prolonged exposure to low temperatures. The resulting tissue damage is painful. Frostbite symptoms will start as a sensation of being stabbed by needles. If not treated, or in severe cases, it can lead to permanent nerve damage and even the need for amputation.

It is critical during high climbs or in cold conditions to take precautions against Frostbite. Conditions in Yosemite's high sierra mountains change dramatically and quickly. It never hurts to be prepared to know the treatment for frostbite.

Dressing appropriately is the first step. Well-insulated boots with the right socks will help protect the feet. Waterproofing is important, since any moisture will create a tunnel for heat exchange that increases the danger.

Good gloves are equally important, in order to protect the hands and fingers. Extremities are the more likely victims since the body's natural response to extreme cold is to tighten blood vessels there in order to preserve interior body temperature.

Heat is readily lost through the scalp, so a warm hat is important to keep overall body temperature at appropriate levels. But that is more an issue of hypothermia in general, rather than frostbite in particular. However, any exterior body part can become frostbitten.

Before you take a high altitude or cold climb, be sure you know the risks and take precautions. Climbing can be a great adventure, provided you prevent it from becoming a tragedy.

If you find yourself needing a treatment for frostbite, here are the steps to follow:

Get out of the cold. Warm up the affected area as quickly as possible.

Do not rub the skin in order to get the blood flowing again. Friction to the skin will just destroy the already damaged skin and its tissue. This could also make room for an infection to set in.

If possible, pour warm water on the affected area. If your off the mountain, take a warm bath. Soak in a temperature of 104 degrees for at least one hour. Warm water will cause the blood vessels to dilate and get the circulation of the blood flowing again. If you are still on the mountain and you do not have access to warm water, put the affected frost bitten limb under your armpit or between your thighs.

Treatment for frostbite requires you to warm your body up. This is painful at best. Take an aspirin, 2 ibuprofens or acetaminophen for the pain.

Do not smoke or chew tobacco. The nicotine reduces blood flow and will slow the healing process down.

When your skin has thawed out, cover the damaged skin with bandages. Then get yourself to the emergency room of a hospital to see a doctor for treatment of frostbite.

If there is any chance of refreezing a thawed body part, do not rewarm it in the fist place. Freezing, rewarming and freezing the skin again will cause more tissue damage than being frozen the first time. As it rethaws, the skin will turn red, swelling will occur and the area will become quite painful. Dark blisters appear on the skin and continues to form over the next few weeks as old skin dies and new skin grows.