ABSTRACT
To maintain a normal, or euthermic, body temperature, the vasculature facilitates the redistribution and transfer of heat throughout the body, preserving a steady core temperature for all vital organs and making the human body relatively insensitive to environmental temperature changes. eoretical calculations have shown that if the body would solely depend on heat conduction and not utilize blood-induced heat redistribution, the body would reach its steady-state temperature at about 80°C [1], which, of course, is incompatible with survival. Heat redistribution and the consistency of an euthermic core temperature of 37°C rely on two main mechanisms. First, adjustments in cardiac output or blood recirculation time induced by central and local thermoregulatory responses allow rapid changes in heat “turnover”; and, second, regulation of blood perfusion of the body surface and the skin and subcutaneous tissue permits either enhanced evaporative loss or preservation of heat as demanded by internal and external environmental temperature changes. If those compensatory mechanisms are exhausted, such as in heat stroke, the body experiences a critical decline in its ability to regulate temperature and will decompensate if not treated. e clinical implications of thermoregulatory failure are easily underscored by the fact that, despite aggressive medical care, about 25% of heat stroke victims experience organ failure and 7% to 14% experience permanent neurological decits [2].
