EMT chapter 32: Environmental Injuries

The diving reflex may allow a person to survive extended periods of submersion in cold water secondary to:

Bradycardia and a slowing of the metabolic rate

What is the first sign of heat stroke?

Change in behavior

A person who strands outside in windy, wintry weather and wears only lightweight clothing is experiencing heat loss mainly by what method?

Convection

The transfer of heat to circulating air, such as when cool air moves across the body's surface, is called:

Convection

Evaporation

Conversion of water or another liquid to gas

All of the following snakes are pit vipers, except:

Coral snake

Frostbite

Damage to the tissues as the result of exposure to cold; frozen body parts

In which of the following environmental emergencies are you most likely to encounter laryngospasm?

Drowning

Geriatric patients, newborns, and infants are especially prone to hyperthermia because they:

Exhibit poor thermoregulation

You are treating a patient who was climbing a 10,000 ft mountain when he began to experience a severe, constant, throbbing headache; ataxia; and extreme fatigue. He is nauseated and as you assess him, he loses consciousness. Which of the following should you expect?

HACE

Which of the following statements regarding drowning is correct?

Laryngospasm following submersion in water makes rescue breathing difficult.

Which of the following statements regarding lightning strikes is correct?

Lightening strikes may cause cardiac dysrhythmias that spontaneously resolve

Breath holding syncope

Loss of consciousness caused by decreased breathing stimulus

You are dispatched to a residence for a young female who is sick. The patient complains of a rash to her lower extremities and truncal area. Your assessment reveals a small, painful blister on her inner thigh. As your partner is taking the patient's vital signs, she states that she and her family returned from a camping trip 2 days ago. On the basis of this patient's presentation, you should suspect:

Lyme disease

A frostbitten foot can be identified by the presence of:

Mottling and blisters

You and your partner are standing by at a large social event at a river resort when a frantic woman tells you that she found a young male floating face-down in the water. Nobody claims to have witnessed the event. After you and your partner enter the water and reach the patient, you should:

Move him as a unit to a supine position

You are dispatched to a local high school track and field event for a 16-year-old male who fainted. The outside temperature is approximately 95°F (35°C) with high humidity. Upon your arrival, the patient is conscious, alert, and complains of nausea and a headache. His skin is cool, clammy, and pale. You should

Move him into the cooled ambulance

Shivering stops and muscle activity ceases once the body's core temperature reaches what?

90 degrees F (32.2 C)

Hypothermia is diagnosed when the core body temperature falls below what temperature?

95 degrees F. (35 C)

Homeostasis

A balance of all the systems of the body

Bends

A common name for decompression sickness

Hypothermia

A condition in which the body core temperature falls below 95°F or 35°C after exposure to a cold environment

Hyperthermia

A condition in which the body core temperature rises to 101°F or 38.3°C or more

Hymenoptera

A family of insects that includes bees, wasps, ants, and yellow jackets

Heat exhaustion

A heat emergency in which a significant amount of fluid and electrolyte loss occurs because of heavy sweating; also called heat prostration or heat collapse

Heat stroke

A life threatening condition of severe hypothermia caused by exposure to excessive natural or artificial heat, marked by warm, dry skin; severely altered mental status; and often a reversible,

Decompression sickness

A painful condition in divers who ascend too quickly, and which gas, especially nitrogen, forms bubbles in blood vessels and other tissues

Antivenin

A serum that counteracts the effect of venom from an animal or insect

Breath-holding syncope is caused by a decreased stimulus to breathe and occurs when

A swimmer hyperventilates prior to entering the water

Reverse triage

A triage process used in treating multiple victims of a lightning strike, in which efforts are focused on those who are in respiratory and cardiac arrest. Reverse triage is different from conventional triage were such patients would be classified as deceased

After being stung on the leg by a jellyfish, a man complains of severe pain to his leg, dizziness, and difficulty breathing. He has a red rash covering his trunk and his blood pressure is 90/50 mm Hg. The EMT should:

Administer oxygen and epinephrine and prepare for rapid transport

Air embolism

Air bubbles in the blood vessels

What is the most dangerous, and most common emergency in scuba diving?

Air embolism

Dysbarism injuries

Any signs and symptoms caused by the difference between the surrounding atmospheric pressure and the total gas pressure and various tissues, fluids, and cavities of the body

A dysbarism injury refers to the signs and symptoms related to changes in:

Barometric pressure

You are assessing a 33-year-old male who complains of severe abdominal pain, weakness, and nausea. He tells you that he was gathering wood to build a fire when he felt a sudden, sharp pain on the back of his hand. Your assessment reveals that the patient's abdomen is rigid and painful to palpation. You should suspect:

Black widow spider bite

Heat cramps

Painful muscle spasms usually associated with vigorous activity in a hot environment

Signs and symptoms of an air embolism include all of the following, EXCEPT:

Pale skin

Your assessment of a 23-year-old female reveals a core body temperature of 93.4°F (34°C). She is conscious, answers your questions appropriately, is shivering, and complains of nausea. Her skin is cold and pale, her muscles appear rigid, and her respirations are rapid. You should:

Place heat packs in her groin, axillae, and behind her neck; cover her with warm blankets and avoid rough handling

You suspect the patient you are treating was bitten by a rattlesnake. What do you do first?

Place the patient in a supine position

Drowning

Process of experiencing respiratory impairment from submersion or immersion in liquid

A patient with a core body temperature of 95°F (35°C) will MOST likely experience:

Rapid breathing

Turgor

The ability of the skin to resist deformation; tested by gently pinching skin on the forehead or back of the hand

Respiration

The loss of body heat as warm air in the lungs is exhaled into the atmosphere and cooler air is inhaled

Convection

The loss of body heat caused by air movement

Conduction

The loss of heat by direct contact when a body part comes into contact (with cold object)

Diving reflex

The slowing of the heart rate caused by submerging in Coldwater

Scuba gear

The system that delivers air to the mouth and lungs at various atmospheric pressure's, increasing with the depth of the dive; stands for self contained underwater breathing apparatus

Core temperature

The temperature of the central part of the body

Ambient temperature

The temperature of the surrounding environment

Radiation

The transfer of heat to colder objects in the environment by radiant energy; for example heat gained from the fire

In the context of an environment that is 90 degrees F with 85% humidity, what does moist, pale, cool skin indicate?

There has been excessive fluid and salt loss

Rough handling a patient with severe hypothermia may cause which of the following dysrhythmias?

Ventricular fibrillation

Signs of late heatstroke include:

a weak, rapid pulse.

The venom of a brown recluse spider is cytotoxic, meaning that it:

causes severe local tissue damage.

Shivering is a mechanism in which the body generates heat by:

increasing the metabolic rate.