• Benjamin P Donham, Sheila B Frankfurt, Rudolph A Cartier, Sean M O'Hara, and Vanessa C Sieg.
• Department of Emergency Medicine, Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center, 36065 Santa Fe Ave, Fort Hood, TX 76544.
• Mil Med. 2020 Jan 7; 185 (Suppl 1): 362367362-367.

IntroductionThe goal of the current study was to characterize the rate and estimate associated mortality and morbidity of exertional heat stroke (EHS) in U.S. military service members.Materials And MethodsThe current study was a retrospective cohort medical chart review study of all active-duty U.S. military service members, hospitalized with EHS at any MTF in the world between January1, 2007 and July 1, 2014. Enrolled patients were identified by altered mental status and elevated temperatures associated with physical exercise.ResultsOut of 607 service members with an International Classification of Disease code indicating any type of heat injury, 48 service members met inclusion criteria for EHS. Core temperature was M = 105.8°F (41°C), standard deviation = 1.43, 90% were diagnosed with EHS prior to hospitalization, and 71% received prehospital cooling. Meantime to normothermia post-hospitalization was 56 minutes (standard deviation = 79.28). Acute kidney injury was diagnosed in 40% of patients although none developed hyperkalemia or required dialysis. Disseminated intravascular coagulation was rare (4%, n = 2) and overall observed mortality was very low (2%, n = 1).ConclusionEHS is aggressively identified and treated in U.S. Military Treatment Facilities. Mortality and morbidity were strikingly low.Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Association of Military Surgeons of the United States 2020.

23 keywords...

hide…