References
A case of heat-related illness
Abstract
Although heat-related illnesses are relatively uncommon in the UK, nonetheless, this can pose serious dangers to military personnel posted to the Middle East as well as tourists who are not acclimatised to the hot weather of a tropical country. This article illustrates some common presentations of heat-related illnesses by highlighting the case of a man who suffered from heat exhaustion after he lost consciousness in his car. This case happened in the authors' home country, Malaysia.
A 70 year-old Malay man was admitted to the emergency department (ED) of Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia after he was found unconscious by a passerby. He was found trapped inside his car parked under the hot sun. According to the patient, after he came out from his cardiac clinic visit, he had difficulty locating his car in a carpark full of vehicles. It took him 15 minutes to find it. Soon afterwards, he felt dizzy and he dozed off. He could not recall what happened after that. The passerby who brought him to the ED said that the patient was found trapped inside his vehicle. He was unconscious at that time. Fortunately, his car doors were unlocked.
On arrival at the ED, the patient was unresponsive to call. His axillary temperature was noted to be 41˚C. Blood pressure was 140/80 mmHg and pulse rate 100 beats/min on admission. Capillary blood sugar was 10 mmol/l. He was sweating profusely.
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