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Heat Illnesses: Basic Information
By Susan Yeargin PhD ATC
Created 05/05/2008 - 15:45

  • 5 to 7
  • Health & Safety
  • Heat Illnesses
  • Heat Illnesses - General
  • Heat Safety
  • Nutrition
  • Sports Hydration
  • 8 to 10
  • 11 to 13
  • 14 to 18
Rider: 
Recognizing Signs and Symptoms Key

 

Athletes who exercise in hot or humid weather are prone to three, progressively more serious, heat illnesses:

  • Heat cramps
  • Exertional heat exhaustion
  • Exertional heat stroke

Symptoms of impending heat illness

Young football player drinking sports drinkIn addition to educating young athletes about both the importance of hydration and the dangers of heat-related illness, ensuring that they drink enough fluids [1], and taking precautions [2] to reduce the risk of heat injury in children in hot and humid weather, you need to watch your child for symptoms of impending heat illness:

  • Fatigue and tiredness
  • Chills
  • Nausea
  • Headache
  • Disorientation
  • Muscle cramping
  • Lightheadedness
  • Dizziness
  • Thirst
  • Grumpiness and irritability
  • Feeling hot
  • Trouble concentrating

A child continuing to exercise when experiencing any of these symptoms could suffer a heat illness. 

Heat Cramps

Overview

  • Painful muscle spasms
  • Not a medical emergency
  • Can be treated by first aid responders
  • Usually occurs during or after exercise
  • Usually starts by affecting specific muscles exercised
  • Can increase in severity by increasing the number of muscles affected
  • In severe cases can involve all skeletal muscles in the body
  • Probably results from
    • Dehydration (either from fluid losses from sweating or failure to re-hydrate during or after sports)
    • Electrolytes lost through sweat (salt, potassium, magnesium etc.)
    • Fatigue
  • No medical attention required
  • Usually occurs during or after exercise
  • Usually affects only specific muscles exercised
  • Probably results from an imbalance of the body's fluid and electrolyte [3] concentrations caused by a loss of electrolytes in sweat.

Symptoms:

  • Muscle pain or feeling of  "twinges"
  • Spasms
  • Visually seeing muscles tighten
  • Possible nausea and thirst as result of dehydration occuring at same time

Treatment:

  • Remove from practice, game or exercise
  • Move child to shade
  • Have child sip or drink fluids with electrolytes [3] (sports drinks) [4] continually until symptoms stop
    • Child should avoid excessive fluid consumption (feeling "sloshy")
    • General rule of thumb: continue sipping or drinking after cramps stop until the child has the urge to urinate
  • Gently massage and stretch the affected muscles
  • Apply ice bags to affected muscles, if tolerated
  • Add salt to foods (not by giving salt tablets [5])
  • If symptoms continue and/or child cannot tolerate fluids by mouth, take child to hospital or doctor (no need to call ambulance)

Exertional Heat Exhaustion

What is heat exhaustion?

  • A serious heat illness
  • May require medical attention
  • Probably results from a reduced blood volume due to excessive sweating, which causes blood to pool in the extremities, causing the child to faint or feel dizzy.

Heat exhaustion symptoms

  • Nausea
  • Extreme fatigue or "jelly legs"
  • Headache
  • Shortness of breath
  • Weak, rapid pulse
  • Thirst or dry mouth
  • Rectal temperature less than 104 degrees F.

Heat exhaustion treatment:

  • Remove child from practice or game
  • Move child out of sun to a shady place
  • Have the child sip or drink fluids containing electrolytes [6] (sports drinks) until the symptoms are gone
    • Avoid excessive drinking (child has "sloshy" feeling)
    • Good rule of thumb: have child continue sipping after cramps are gone and child has an urge to urinate
  • Remove excessive clothing
  • Cool (mainly for comfort) the child with fans, cold towels/sheets, misters, or ice bags on arms or legs Athlete cooling off by pouring water on head
  • Hold the child out of playing or exercising in the heat for at least one full day.  Hold out longer if they experience any symptoms when they try to return.
  • Seek medical attention, if no improvement within 15 to 20 minutes

Exertional Heat Stroke (Exercise-Induced Hyperthermia)

Overview

  • Life-threatening medical emergency
  • Body's temperature is too high
  • Left untreated, exertional heat stroke results in death due to organ damage across all body systems (liver, kidney, brain, etc.)
  • Until medical help arrives, the key is to immediately lower elevated body temperature

Symptoms

  • Excessively high rectal temperature (over 104 degrees)(oral, axillary, tympanic, and temporal measurements are innacurate and cannot be trusted)
And any or all of the following:
  • Erratic pulse (strong and rapid or weak and rapid)
  • Lack of coordination
  • Collapse
  • Low blood pressure
  • Vomiting
  • Headache
  • Loss of consciousness and/or seizure 
  • Shock
  • Irritability, confusion, disorientation
  • Sweaty skin that may be red/flushed or pale

Treatment

  • Call 911 [7]
  • Remove all excessive clothes
  • Ice-water or cold-water immersion [8] with water continually circulating  in:
    • Large stock tank or Rubbermaid container [9]
    • Baby pool
    • Bath tub
    • Pond
    • Creek
  • When not feasible, immediate and continual dousing with water (either from a hose, multiple water containers or shower) combined with fanning and continually rotating cold, wet towels on head and neck until immersive cooling can occur.
Teaser title: 
Recognizing and Treating Heat Illnesses
Teaser image: 
Teaser text: 

Athletes who exercise in hot or humid weather are prone to heat illnesses.  Here are the signs and symptoms of and treatment for the three kinds of heat illness: heat cramps, heat exhaustion or heat
stroke.

Related articles: 
Ice-Water Immersion Best for Treating Heat Stroke [10]
Dehydration: Signs and Symptoms [11]
Football Players At Greater Risk of Heat Illness [12]
Pre-Season Heat-Acclimatization Guidelines [13]
Preventing Heat Illness During Summer Football Practice [14]
Ten Steps To Preventing Heat Stroke [15]
Kids in Sports
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Source URL: https://www.momsteam.com/nutrition/heat-illness-cramps-exhaustion-stroke-signs-treatment

Links:
[1] https://www.momsteam.com/alpha/features/nutrition/ensuring_adequate_fluids.shtml
[2] https://www.momsteam.com/alpha/features/nutrition/precautions_to_avoid_heat_illness.shtml
[3] https://www.momsteam.com/alpha/features/nutrition/electrolytes.shtml
[4] https://www.momsteam.com/node/280
[5] https://www.momsteam.com/node/292
[6] https://www.momsteam.com/node/865
[7] https://www.momsteam.com/node/387
[8] https://www.momsteam.com/node/2446
[9] https://www.momsteam.com/node/5733
[10] https://www.momsteam.com/health-safety/hydration-safety/ice-water-immersion-best-treating-exertional-heat-stroke
[11] https://www.momsteam.com/health-safety/dehydration-signs-and-symptoms
[12] https://www.momsteam.com/sports/football-tackle/safety/why-football-players-at-greater-risk-of-heat-illness
[13] https://www.momsteam.com/health-safety/pre-season-heat-acclimatization-guidelines
[14] https://www.momsteam.com/sports/football-tackle/safety/preventing-heat-illness-during-summer-football-practice
[15] https://www.momsteam.com/nutrition/sports-hydration/heat-illnesses/ten-steps-to-preventing-heat-stroke