A body bag can save your life: a novel method of cold water immersion for heat stroke treatment

• Published in: Journal of the American College of Emergency Physicians Open Vol. 1; no. 1; pp. 49 - 52
• Main Authors: Kim, David A., Lindquist, Benjamin D., Shen, Sam H., Wagner, Alexei M., Lipman, Grant S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States John Wiley and Sons Inc 01-02-2020
• Subjects: Case Report; General Medicine
• ISSN: 2688-1152; 2688-1152
• DOI: 10.1002/emp2.12007

Non‐exertional heat stroke is a life‐threatening condition characterized by passive exposure to high ambient heat, a core body temperature of 40°C (104°F) or greater, and central nervous system dysfunction. Rapid cooling is imperative to minimize mortality and morbidity. Although evaporative and convective measures are often used for cooling heat stroke patients, cold water immersion produces the fastest cooling. However, logistical difficulties make cold water immersion challenging to implement in the emergency department. To our knowledge, there is no documented case utilizing a body bag (ie, human remains pouch) as a cold water immersion tank for rapid resuscitation of heat stroke. During a regional heat wave an elderly woman was found unconscious in a parking lot with an oral temperature of 40°C (104°F) and altered mental status. She was cooled to 38.4°C (101.1°F) in 10 minutes by immersion in an ice‐ and water‐filled body bag. The patient rapidly regained normal mentation and was discharged home from the ED. This case highlights a novel method for efficient and convenient cold water immersion for heat stroke treatment in the emergency department.