Frost Takes a Bite out of Children, Pets
www.theoaklandpress.com
By BOB GROSS
December 16, 2004, OAKLAND, MICHIGAN It's not just that the weather outside is frightful, it's what cold temperatures can do to the human body.
Dr. Frank McGeorge, director of emergency at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, recalled a horrifying case of frostbite involving a homeless person.
"I had a patient once who had such severe frostbite to his feet that he had not felt his feet in days," said McGeorge.
"When he was presented to the emergency department and we pulled on his shoe, his entire foot came off."
That's an extreme case, but it does illustrate that now that it's cold outside, people need to take precautions to protect both themselves and their companion animals from cold-related conditions, such as frostbite and hypothermia.
Temperatures Wednesday fell to 15.6 degrees at the National Weather Service's White Lake forecast office, said meteorologist David Shuler - and colder weather is on its way.
"Sunday, there's quite a vigorous front coming through that's going to bring in some Arctic air," he said. "We're looking at temperatures dropping through the day on Sunday through the 20s into the teens by evening and into the single digits by the morning, with windchill down to zero."
While not threatening any records - the coldest temperature recorded in Detroit was 24 degrees below zero on Dec. 22, 1872 - "you definitely have to bundle up in this kind of weather," said Shuler.
So do dogs and cats, added Debby MacDonald, an animal cruelty investigator with the Michigan Humane Society.
"Once we see the temperatures drop to freezing at night, is when we really want to be careful," she said.
Investigators typically see a winter increase in complaints related both to inadequate shelter and underweight dogs, she said.
"People need to increase the caloric intake of their animals and provide adequate water," she said. "Dogs burn a lot of calories in the winter, and we see a lot of dogs that lose weight over the winter."
Large breed dogs can stay outside if they have adequate shelter, said MacDonald. That means a doghouse with a flap that closes, as well as warm bedding, such as straw.
"But if it gets down to the teens or single digits, it's always better to bring your animal in," she said.
While cats can usually find someplace sheltered to curl up in, out of the cold, it's better if both they and small-breed dogs are kept inside.
"A small dog is in a lot more danger outside than a large dog would be," she said.
The worst situation for a dog, she said, is being chained up in a back yard with no shelter.
People also need to keep an eye out for themselves, said McGeorge. Consequences of too much frosty exposure can range from mild frostbite to tissue damage and loss. Spending a lot of time outside in the cold without adequate clothing can cause hypothermia and death.
Frostbite, said McGeorge, "is in many ways exactly the same as a burn. The first stage is some mild redness and some skin irritation."
In the second stage, the freezing goes much deeper. Blisters may form. With time, said McGeorge, it will heal and the area will recover.
In the third stage, "you have destroyed the tissue and that area if not treated properly stands the risk of infection," said McGeorge.
"You may lose that piece of your body, whether it's the tip of your ear or the tip of your finger."
Ears, fingers, toes and the tip of your nose are most susceptible to frostbite because those extremities don't get as great a blood flow as other areas of the body. McGeorge said that in extremely cold and windy conditions, all exposed areas of skin are at risk.
Severe cases of frostbite should be treated at an emergency room.
While frostbite is a concern, hypothermia is a greater cold-weather danger.
"You don't die of frostbite," said McGeorge. "You die of hypothermia.
As the body tries to conserve heat, it begins to shut down organ functions.
"If one of the organs that stops is your heart, you'll die, or if it's the breathing function in your brain that stops, you'll die," said McGeorge.
