Chapter 30: Environmental Emergencies
Which of the following statements regarding lightning strikes is correct?
Lighting often results in a brief period of asystole that resolves spontaneously
A person's ability to shiver is lost when his or her body temperature falls below...
90°F (32°C)
Which of the following MOST accurately describes hyperthermia?
The body is exposed to more heat than it can lose
Compared to adults, infants and children are at higher risk for hypothermia for all of the following reasons, EXCEPT...
a relatively small surface area
Breath-holding syncope is caused by a decreased stimulus to breathe and occurs when...
a swimmer hyperventilates prior to entering the water
Signs of late heatstroke include...
a weak, rapid pulse
To assess a patient's general temperature, pull back on your glove and place the back of your hand on his or her skin at the...
abdomen
The MOST prominent symptom of decompression sickness is...
abdominal or joint pain
A 30-year-old male was rescued after being lost in the woods for approximately 18 hours. The outside temperature is 30°F (−1°C). He is immediately placed in the warmed ambulance, where you perform a primary assessment. He is unconscious, pale, and apneic. You should...
assess for a carotid pulse for up to 45 seconds
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
The venom of a brown recluse spider is cytotoxic, meaning that it...
causes severe local tissue damage
Geriatric patients are at a higher risk for heatstroke because...
circulation to the skin is reduced
All of the following snakes are pit vipers, EXCEPT for the...
coral snake
The body's natural cooling mechanism, in which sweat is converted to a gas, is called...
evaporation
Geriatric patients, newborns, and infants are especially prone to hyperthermia because they...
exhibit poor thermoregulation
Shivering is a mechanism in which the body generates heat by...
increasing the metabolic rate
In contrast to the brown recluse spider, the black widow spider...
is large and has a red-orange hourglass mark on its abdomen
In order for sweating to be an effective cooling mechanism...
it must be able to evaporate from the body
You receive a call to a residence for a sick patient. Upon your arrival, you find the patient, a 53-year-old diabetic male, lying down on his front porch. His wife tells you that he had been mowing the lawn in the heat for the past 3 hours. The patient is confused and has hot, moist skin. His pulse is weak and thready, and his blood pressure is 90/50 mm Hg. In addition to administering 100% oxygen, you should...
load him into the ambulance and begin rapid cooling interventions
The venom of a black widow spider is toxic to the...
nervous system
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. In addition to monitoring her ABCs, administering oxygen, and turning up the heat in the back of the ambulance, you should...
place heat packs to her groin, axillae, and behind her neck; cover her with warm blankets; and avoid rough handling
The EMT must assume that any unwitnessed water-related incident is accompanied by...
possible spinal injury
While drinking beer with his friends near a creek, a 31-year-old male was bitten on the leg by an unidentified snake. The patient is conscious and alert and in no apparent distress. Your assessment of his leg reveals two small puncture marks with minimal pain and swelling. In addition to administering oxygen and providing reassurance, further care for this patient should include...
supine positioning, splinting the leg, and transporting
Which of the following would be the LEAST likely to occur in a patient with a core body temperature of between 89°F (32°C) and 92°F (33°C)?
tachycardia
An air embolism associated with diving occurs when...
the diver holds his or her breath during a rapid ascent