5-Minute Emergency Consult
Hypothermia
Basics
Description
- Body temperature <35 °C
- Primary hypothermia due to cold exposure
- Secondary hypothermia due to other conditions causing impaired thermoregulation, deceased heat production, and/or increased heat loss
- Risk factors:
- Poor temperature regulation:
- Very young
- Advanced age
- Comorbid condition
- Intoxication
- Poor temperature regulation:
Etiology
- Environmental:
- Immersion
- Nonimmersion
- Dermal disease:
- Burns
- Exfoliative dermatitis
- Severe psoriasis
- Drug induced:
- Ethanol
- Phenothiazines
- Sedative–hypnotics
- Metabolic:
- Hypoadrenalism
- Hypopituitarism
- Hypothyroidism
- Hypoglycemia
- Malnutrition
- Extreme physical exertion
- Neurologic:
- Acute spinal cord transection
- Head trauma
- Stroke
- Tumor
- Wernicke disease
- Neuromuscular inefficiency:
- Age extreme
- Impaired shivering
- Lack of acclimatization
- Sepsis
- Iatrogenic:
- Aggressive fluid replacement with cold fluids
- Heat stroke treatment
Pediatric Considerations
Infants have a large body surface to mass ratio child abuse
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Citation
Schaider, Jeffrey J., et al., editors. "Hypothermia." 5-Minute Emergency Consult, 6th ed., Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2020. Emergency Central, emergency.unboundmedicine.com/emergency/view/5-Minute_Emergency_Consult/307341/2.2/Hypothermia.
Hypothermia. In: Schaider JJJ, Barkin RMR, Hayden SRS, et al, eds. 5-Minute Emergency Consult. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2020. https://emergency.unboundmedicine.com/emergency/view/5-Minute_Emergency_Consult/307341/2.2/Hypothermia. Accessed June 16, 2026.
Hypothermia. (2020). In Schaider, J. J., Barkin, R. M., Hayden, S. R., Wolfe, R. E., Barkin, A. Z., Shayne, P., & Rosen, P. (Eds.), 5-Minute Emergency Consult (6th ed.). Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. https://emergency.unboundmedicine.com/emergency/view/5-Minute_Emergency_Consult/307341/2.2/Hypothermia
Hypothermia [Internet]. In: Schaider JJJ, Barkin RMR, Hayden SRS, et al, eds. 5-Minute Emergency Consult. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2020. [cited 2026 June 16]. Available from: https://emergency.unboundmedicine.com/emergency/view/5-Minute_Emergency_Consult/307341/2.2/Hypothermia.
* Article titles in AMA citation format should be in sentence-case
TY - ELEC
T1 - Hypothermia
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ED - Barkin,Adam Z,
ED - Shayne,Philip,
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ED - Schaider,Jeffrey J,
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ED - Hayden,Stephen R,
ED - Wolfe,Richard E,
BT - 5-Minute Emergency Consult
UR - https://emergency.unboundmedicine.com/emergency/view/5-Minute_Emergency_Consult/307341/2.2/Hypothermia
PB - Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
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DB - Emergency Central
DP - Unbound Medicine
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