Chapter 16 Terms Flashcards
Anaphylaxis
A form of distributive shock caused by an often sudden severe allergic reaction, in which air passages may swell and restrict breathing.
AKA anaphylactic shock.
Antivenin
A substance used to counteract the poisonous effects of venom.
Arterial gas embolism
A condition in which air bubbles enter the bloodstream and subsequently travel to the brain.
Results from a rapid ascent from deep water, which expands air in the lungs too quickly.
Barotrauma
Injury sustained because of pressure differences between areas of the body and the surrounding environment.
Most commonly occurs in air travel and scuba diving.
Conduction
One of the ways the body loses or gains heat.
Occurs when the skin is in contact with something with a lower or higher temperature.
Convection
One of the ways the body loses or gains heat.
Occurs when air moves over the skin and carries away or increases heat.
Core temperature
The temperature inside the body.
Decompression sickness
A sometimes fatal disorder caused by the release of has bubbles into body tissue.
AKA the bends.
Occurs when scuba divers ascend too rapidly, without allowing sufficient time for gases to exit body tissues and be removed through exhalation.
Dehydration
Inadequate fluids in the body’s tissues.
Drowning
An event in which a victim experiences respiratory impariment due to submersion in water.
May or may not result in death.
Electrolytes
Substances that are electrically conductive in solution and are essential to the regulation of nerve and muscle function and fluid balance through the body.
Include sodium, potassium, chloride, calcium, and phosphate.
Evaporation
One of the ways the body loses heat.
Occurs when the body is wet and the moisture evaporates, cooling the skin.
Free diving
An extreme sport in which divers compete under water without any underwater breathing apparatus.
Frostbite
A condition in which body tissues freeze.
Most commonly found in fingers, toes, ears, and nose.
Heat cramps
A form of heat-related illness, painful involuntary muscle spasms that occur during or after physical exertion in high heat, caused by loss of electrolytes and water from perspiration.
May be a sign that a more serious heat-related illness is developing.
Usually affects the legs and abdomen.
Heat exhaustion
More severe form of heat-related illness.
Results when fluid and electrolytes are lost through perspiration and are not replaced by other fluids. Often results from strenuous work or wearing too much clothing in a hot, humid environment.
Heat index
An index that combines the air temperature and relative humidity to determine the perceived, human-felt temperature.
A measure of how hot it feels.
Heat stroke
The most serious form of heat-related illness.
Life-threatening and develops when the body’s cooling mechanisms are overwhelmed and body systems begin to fail.
Hyperthermia
Overheating of the body.
Includes heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke.
Hypothalamus
Control center of the body’s temperature, located in the brain.
Hypothermia
The state of the body being cooler than the usual core temperature, caused by either excessive loss of body heat and/or the body’s inability to produce heat.
Metabolism
The physical and chemical processes of converting oxygen and food into energy within the body.
Rabies
An infectious viral disease that affects the nervous system of human and other mammals.
Has a high fatality rate if left untreated.
Radiation
One of the ways the body loses heat.
Heat radiates out of the body, especially from the head and neck.
