How to treat frostbite

Video: How to Treat Frostbite - First Aid Training - St John Ambulance

Content

Steps
Part 1 of 3: How to determine the severity of frostbite
Part 2 of 3: Warming up the frostbitten area
Part 3 of 3: Professional Medical Care
Tips
Warnings
What do you need

Frostbite is damage to body tissues resulting from prolonged exposure to low temperatures. Most often, fingers and toes, nose, ears, cheeks, chin are affected. If the frostbite is severe, amputation of the affected body parts may be required. Superficial frostbite is most common, in which only the skin is damaged, but more severe frostbite is possible, accompanied by necrosis of tissues located deeper. Therefore, care must be taken when providing medical attention to minimize damage and prevent further tissue damage.

Steps

Part 1 of 3: How to determine the severity of frostbite

1 First, determine if you have superficial frostbite. As a rule, it precedes frostbite affecting deeper tissues. In the case of superficial frostbite, only the skin freezes, while a spasm of blood vessels occurs, due to which the affected area of the skin becomes pale or, on the contrary, turns red. This may be accompanied by a feeling of numbness, pain, tingling, or tingling in the affected area. However, the structure of the skin does not change and sensitivity to pressure remains. Symptoms disappear as the affected area warms up.
- In children, superficial frostbite occurs faster than in adults. Protruding parts of the body are most often affected: ears, nose, cheeks, fingers and toes.
- Superficial frostbite should be a warning that more severe frostbite is possible under such weather conditions.
2 Determine if you have mild frostbite. Although this degree of frostbite may not feel "mild," it does respond well to treatment. In this condition, the skin loses sensitivity, becomes white or gray-yellow in color with red spots, hardens or swells, hurts or throbs.
- With mild frostbite, tissue death usually does not occur. Sometimes, with this degree of frostbite, blisters filled with transparent contents can form during the day.They are usually located at the edges of the affected area and do not lead to tissue death.
3 Determine if you have severe frostbite. Severe frostbite is the most dangerous degree of frostbite. In this condition, the skin is pale, waxy and unusually hard, loss of sensitivity or numbness of the affected area occurs. Sometimes with severe frostbite, bloody blisters form on the skin or signs of gangrene (gray-black dead skin) appear.
- In the most severe frostbite, muscles and bones are affected, and skin and tissue death occurs. In this case, the probability of tissue death is very high.
4 It is necessary to get shelter from the cold as soon as possible and get medical attention. If it is possible to go to the hospital or call an ambulance within two hours, then you should not try to treat frostbite yourself. If you cannot shelter from the cold and there is a risk of re-freezing, then you should not try to warm the frostbitten areas. Repeated freezing-thawing several times can lead to more serious tissue damage than a single freezing.
- If you are more than two hours away from a health facility, you can start treatment yourself. Regardless of the severity of frostbite, the same basic principles of first aid in the "field" (away from the hospital) should be applied.

Part 2 of 3: Warming up the frostbitten area

1 Warm up the frostbitten area as soon as possible. If you notice frostbite areas on the body (most often fingers and toes, ears and nose), immediately try to warm them. Place your hands in your armpits. If your face, fingers, or other body parts are frostbitten, cover them with dry gloved hands. If you are wearing wet clothes, take them off, as they will inhibit the rise in body temperature.
2 Take pain relievers if necessary. If you have severe frostbite, the process of rewarming the affected area can be painful. Take an NSAID (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug) such as ibuprofen to relieve pain. However, do not take aspirin, as it can interfere with the repair of damaged tissue. Stick to the dosages recommended in the instructions.
3 Warm the frostbitten area in warm water. Pour 40-42 degrees Celsius water (40.5 degrees Celsius is best) into a basin or bowl and immerse the affected body part. Do not use hotter temperatures as this can cause skin burns and blistering. If possible, add antibacterial soap to the water. This will help prevent infection of the affected area. Submerge the frostbitten area in water for 15-30 minutes.
- If it is not possible to measure the temperature of the water with a thermometer, then immerse an intact hand or elbow in the water. The water should be very warm, but bearable. If the water is too hot, add some cold water.
- If possible, use circulating water. The best option would be a hot tub, but you can also use running water.
- Make sure that the frostbite area does not touch the walls of the container with water. This can cause additional skin injuries.
- Warm up the frostbitten area for at least 15-30 minutes. Severe pain may develop as you get warmer. However, you need to continue to warm the frostbitten area until it is completely thawed. If the warming process is interrupted, this can lead to even more damage.
- If the frostbite is severe, it may be necessary to rewarm the affected area for an hour.
4 Do not use heaters, fireplaces or heating pads. When using heating appliances, it is difficult to control the rewarming process, and for the treatment of frostbite it is important that the affected area warms up gradually. In addition, there is a risk of burns.
- As the skin loses sensitivity in the frostbitten areas, it will be difficult to correctly assess the temperature. In addition, the temperature emanating from dry heat sources is difficult to regulate.
5 Watch for frostbite areas. A tingling and burning sensation should appear as you get warmer. The skin on the frostbitten areas should first turn pink or red, possibly with spots. The usual sensations and normal skin texture should gradually return. If swelling and blisters appear on the skin, then these are signs of deeper tissue damage. In this case, you need to get qualified medical care as soon as possible. If, after warming the skin for several minutes in warm water, its condition has not changed at all, this may indicate severe damage, which should be examined and treated by a doctor.
- Photograph the affected area, if possible. Thanks to this, the doctor will be able to track the frostbite process and see if there are positive results of treatment.
6 Prevent further tissue damage. Until you receive qualified medical attention, do your best not to aggravate the condition of the frostbite tissue. Do not rub or irritate the frostbite skin, try not to make unnecessary movements and do not allow this area to freeze again.
- After warming the frostbitten area, let it air dry or blot it with a clean towel, but do not rub the skin.
- Do not apply a bandage yourself. The bandage has not been proven to protect the frostbite area until qualified medical attention is provided, but it will restrain movement.
- Do not massage the frostbitten area. This can cause further tissue damage.
- Raise the frostbitten area to reduce swelling.

Part 3 of 3: Professional Medical Care

1 Seek qualified medical attention. The severity of the frostbite determines which treatment is required. Most often, hydrotherapy is used. However, in severe cases, surgical intervention is required. If the frostbite is severe, the doctor may amputate it. Such a decision is made only 1-3 months after frostbite, when it is possible to assess the entire degree of tissue damage.
- The doctor will be able to perform the rewarming properly and determine if there are "non-viable" tissues that cannot be repaired. After emergency treatment, your doctor will apply a bandage to the affected area. Before you leave the hospital, your doctor will give advice on care and treatment depending on the severity of the frostbite.
- In the event of severe frostbite, your doctor may refer you to a burn unit where you can get the help you need.
- For moderate to severe frostbite, follow the doctor's recommendations for another 1-2 days after discharge from the hospital. With very severe frostbite, the treatment process will take from 10 days to 2-3 weeks.
2 Talk to your doctor about any follow-up care you need. This is important, as the damage to the frostbitten skin may worsen during the healing process. In addition, inflammation may develop, and painful sensations may persist for a while. You will need a good rest. Also talk with your doctor about:
- Can aloe vera be used? Applying aloe vera cream to frostbitten areas has been found to help avoid aggravating skin and tissue damage and speed up the healing process.
- What to do with blisters. Blisters may appear on the skin as it heals. They cannot be opened. Ask your doctor to tell you what to do with the blisters until they open up on their own.
- How to reduce painful sensations. Your doctor will likely prescribe ibuprofen, which can help reduce pain and inflammation. Take it as directed.
- How to prevent infection of the damaged area. For severe frostbite, your doctor may prescribe antibiotics. It is important to drink the full course of your prescribed antibiotics.
- Can you walk. If your legs or feet are frostbitten, you cannot walk until they are completely healed, as this can worsen the damage. Ask your doctor if the hospital can provide you with a wheelchair or other means of transportation.
3 Protect frostbite areas from the cold. In order to avoid further tissue damage and speed up the healing process, it is necessary to protect the damaged area from the effects of cold for 6-12 months.
- To prevent frostbite in the future, try to spend as little time as possible outdoors in cold weather. Especially with high air humidity and strong winds.

Tips

If there is a general hypothermia of the body, then first of all it is necessary to treat it. Hypothermia is a general drop in body temperature to dangerously low levels. Hypothermia can be fatal, therefore, when providing first aid, it is necessary to fight first of all with general hypothermia of the body.
How to prevent frostbite:
- Wear mittens instead of gloves.
- Wear several thin layers of clothing instead of one or two thick layers.
- Clothing should always be dry, especially socks, gloves or mittens.
- Put on extra layers of clothing on your child and bring him into a warm room every hour to keep him warm. Children are more susceptible to frostbite, as they lose heat much faster than adults.
- Shoes should not be tight.
- Wear a hat and ski mask to cover your ears and nose.
- If you are caught in a blizzard, immediately seek cover.

Warnings

Do not allow repeated frostbite of already warmed extremities, as this can lead to irreversible tissue damage.
In the process of tissue repair, you should not drink alcohol and smoke cigarettes, as this contributes to a deterioration in blood circulation.
With frozen hands, you will not be able to feel how hot the water is, so in order not to burn yourself, ask someone else to determine the temperature of the water.
Do not use any kind of direct fire (for example, a fire), hot water bottles or heating pads to warm up frostbitten parts of the body, as this will not feel a burning sensation and you may get burned.
After rewarming, frostbitten body parts should not be used until they have fully recovered, as this can lead to further tissue damage.
Children are more susceptible to cold than adults. Therefore, do not leave children unattended when walking outside in cold weather.
If the temperature is very low, then frostbite can be obtained in just 5 minutes.