In the human body there are special mechanisms of thermoregulation. They allow you to maintain body temperature in a stable state. However, under the influence of various adverse factors, the thermoregulatory function may be impaired. Fatal body temperature for a person is considered such indicators at which the body can no longer function. What could cause this condition? And at what indicators of the thermometer do you need to sound the alarm? We will consider these issues in the article.
Normal performance
The human body is able to fully function only in a small temperature range. Its normal indicators are largely individual. They depend on the characteristics of the body, external conditions, time of day. On average, indicators from +36.0 to +37.1 degrees are considered the norm. If the thermometer column deviates from these numbers to a greater or lesser extent, then this usually indicates a disadvantage in the body.
However, there are also indicators at which irreversible and incompatible changes in life occur in the body. The deadly temperature of a person’s body can be either lower than normal (hypothermia) or significantly higher (hyperthermia). In the first case, the death of the body occurs due to general hypothermia. With hyperthermia, either the disease itself, which caused a rise in temperature, or the influence of external factors, leads to death.
Hazardous indicators
What thermometer readings are considered dangerous? What is the lethal body temperature for humans?
If we are talking about hypothermia, then with figures of about 25 degrees there is already a serious threat to life. Doctors assess this condition as dying. You can save a person only with the help of emergency resuscitation measures. If the body temperature dropped below 20 degrees, then death occurs.
As for the high temperature, when the thermometer is above +42.5 degrees, the patient disrupts the metabolism in the brain neurons. Mass death of nerve cells occurs. Even if doctors can save the patient’s life at this stage, a complete restoration of health is already unlikely. Some functions of the body will be lost forever. If the body temperature exceeds +45 degrees, then in the human body there is a destruction of proteins. This almost inevitably leads to death.
Causes of Hypothermia
Hypothermia most often develops under the influence of external factors. This condition occurs due to hypothermia. The following causes of hypothermia can be distinguished:
- stay in wet and cold conditions;
- stay in the cold in a state of intoxication;
- loss of consciousness at low air temperature;
- wearing wet or damp clothes;
- dehydration;
- exposure to cold water.
All of the above factors worsen the thermal insulation of the body and lead to hypothermia of the body.
In some cases, the following diseases and conditions of the body become the cause of hypothermia:
- muscle dystrophy;
- body paralysis;
- decreased adrenal function;
- severe exhaustion.
These pathologies disrupt the process of thermoregulation. However, they cause severe hypothermia only in cold conditions. Fatal human body temperature (below 20 degrees) most often appears due to the simultaneous exposure to internal and external factors. For example, a patient with thermoregulatory disorders has an increased risk of death from hypothermia if he is in the cold for a long time in light clothing.
Causes of Hyperthermia
Body temperature often rises under the influence of internal factors. The following diseases can cause hyperthermia:
- infectious pathologies;
- inflammatory processes;
- suppuration (abscesses, phlegmon);
- tumors.
In these cases, hyperthermia is a protective reaction of the body to the invasion of a foreign agent (infection or tumor cells). The human immune system begins to actively produce antibodies and white blood cells to fight the disease. This process is accompanied by a pronounced temperature reaction.
What body temperature is fatal for humans with infectious and inflammatory pathologies? It is important to remember that with such diseases the patient dies not from overheating of the body, but from organ damage. The cause of death is not hyperthermia, but the disease itself. High body temperature only indicates a serious condition of the patient.
For example, in the case of flu, a person’s fatal body temperature is about +42 degrees. Such indicators of the thermometer indicate a strong viral intoxication. Usually, doctors do not recommend artificially lowering the temperature to +38 - +38.5 degrees. Fever is one of the signs of immunity fighting infection. But a temperature of +39 degrees and above is considered an indication for taking antipyretics, since hyperthermia can adversely affect the state of brain cells.
The cause of dangerous hyperthermia can also be neurological pathologies:
- stroke;
- cerebral hemorrhage;
- skull injuries.
With such diseases in humans, the parts of the brain that are responsible for thermoregulation can be affected. This causes a sharp rise in body temperature.
However, hyperthermia develops not only with internal diseases. Body temperature can rise to critical values and due to external factors, such as heat or direct sunlight. This leads to the following dangerous conditions:
- Heatstroke. This is an acute pathology that develops when a person is exposed to a high temperature of the external environment. Heat stroke can occur when working in hot shops, staying in the heat for a long time, or during a fire. Overheating of the body leads to a deterioration of the heart and difficulty breathing. Blood cells are destroyed by heat and ammonia is released. This causes severe intoxication. In severe cases, a person dies from overheating.
- Sunstroke. From the luminous emits not only ultraviolet, but also infrared radiation, which negatively affects the body. With excessive exposure to sunlight, not only the surface of the skin overheats, but also the internal organs. Especially dangerous is the effect of infrared rays on the brain: it leads to disruption of the temperature-regulating center. If you do not help a person in time, then he may die from overheating.
Hypothermia
Hypothermia of the body develops in several stages. Each stage of hypothermia is accompanied by certain symptoms, which depends on the degree of decrease in body temperature:
- Below +36 degrees. A person feels the muscular tension of the neck and upper body. The blood supply to the arms and legs worsens, because of this, the patient cramps the limbs.
- Less than +35 degrees. These parameters are achieved by body temperature when exposed to cold for 1 hour. This stage of hypothermia is accompanied by severe chills.
- Below +34 degrees. The production of enzymes in the brain is disrupted, the degradation and death of nerve cells begins. Drowsiness, apathy, and memory disorders appear.
- Less than +28 degrees. An acute oxygen deficiency forms in the body, hallucinations occur in the victim.
- Less than +25 degrees. Cardiac activity and breathing are significantly weakened, and consciousness becomes confused. Serious disorders of coordination of movements arise, often a person is not able to move independently.
The fatal threshold for body temperature for humans is +20 degrees. With these indicators, the victim loses consciousness, he develops severe pulmonary edema. A fatal outcome occurs due to the cessation of cardiac activity.
The danger of hyperthermia
With hyperthermia in a person, blood circulation sharply worsens. As a result, the organs are filled with blood, which leads to a violation of their function. Under overheating, the body produces an excessive amount of enzymes and hormones that are toxic to the myocardium. As a result, the patient dies from cardiac arrest.
Fatal body temperature for a person is from +42 to +43 degrees. However, the patient may die with a lower thermometer. Indeed, with hyperthermia, several dangerous factors act on the body at once. High temperature leads to intoxication with metabolic products, impaired water-salt balance and impaired function of many organs. Such a negative complex effect and causes a fatal outcome.
First aid
In order to prevent a decrease or rise in body temperature to dangerous indicators, the patient must be provided with timely help. During heat and sunstroke, you must adhere to the following procedure:
- Move victim to a cool place, protected from sunlight.
- Remove clothing from the patient and apply cold compresses to the body and forehead.
- If the patient is conscious, then you should give him a cool drink.
If hyperthermia is provoked by an infectious and inflammatory process, then antipyretic drugs should be given only at a temperature of +38.5 to +40 degrees. If the thermometer rises above +40 degrees, then it is necessary to call an ambulance crew. To bring down such a high temperature at home is dangerous.
The algorithm of first aid for hypothermia is as follows:
- The victim is transferred to a warm room.
- Cold or damp clothes should be removed, rub the body and limbs with a soft cloth.
- Then a person needs to be covered with a warm blanket. Warm mittens or gloves are put on the patient’s hands, and woolen socks are placed on the feet.
- The victim must be drunk with hot sweet tea. Giving alcohol is strictly prohibited, it can only worsen its condition.
If a person has suffered severe hypothermia or overheating of the body, then immediately after first aid it is necessary to call a doctor. Hypothermia and hyperthermia are often accompanied by serious disorders of the body that require qualified treatment.