Freezing can be severe in the Lehigh Valley. Here you will find risk factors and prevention tips.

Severe cases of frostbite occur in the Lehigh Valley, which can lead to hospitalizations and even amputations and the need for follow-up therapy.

Certain groups are more at risk of a dangerous bout of frostbite than others, but there are precautions anyone can take to stay safe as temperatures plummet and winds whip around us.

Measured in stages of severity, freezing is the freezing of the skin and the body tissue just below it, according to the National Weather Service. It first affects exposed body tissue where blood circulation may be limited, such as the fingers, toes, nose, and ears.

Hypothermia, another dangerous condition caused by the cold, is the most common cause of death in winter weather, the weather service says: “Most people are surprised to learn that deaths from hypothermia can occur in temperatures between 30 and 50 degrees” Fahrenheit.

It can be difficult to estimate on a national level the number of people seeking treatment for frostbite. Federal statistics group them under the heading of Injury, which together accounted for 16.9% of emergency department visits. in 2021. Additional federal statistics for 2006-10 in the United States are listed Cold as the underlying cause of 3,192 deaths.and a contributing factor to 3,468 more deaths.

TO wind chill graph According to the Meteorological Service, freezing can occur in 30 minutes with a wind chill of 18 or 19 degrees below zero. Those types of frigid conditions occur with an air temperature of 5 degrees and a wind speed of 30 mph, or an air temperature of 10 degrees and winds of 55 mph, to name a couple of examples.

To put that in perspective, during last week’s Arctic high pressure over the Lehigh Valley, wind chills bottomed out at 5 degrees Fahrenheit above zero from Tuesday morning through Friday morning at Lehigh International Airport Valley outside Allentown, according to the weather service. The worst of last week’s wind chill at the airport came with air temperatures in the 10s and winds around 15 to 20 mph, not counting gusts recorded as fast as the urban speed limit (25 to 35 mph).

Conditions just to the north were closer to the danger zone of rapid susceptibility to freezing, as the weather service forecast very cold wind chills of up to 15 degrees below zero last week in the Pocono Mountains region of Carbon County and Monroe.

Lehigh Valley Health Network’s Burn Recovery Center at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Salisbury Township has admitted three to six patients for inpatient treatment for frostbite annually for the past three years, according to Katrina Schafer, a physician assistant there. The network, part of Philadelphia-based Jefferson Health, has doctor offices or a hospital in a 10-county region of eastern Pennsylvania, from suburban Philadelphia, Berks and Schuylkill counties north to the Poconos.

The most serious cases occur among young people, those under 18 years of age and the elderly, or those over 65 years of age. They may be unhoused or have underlying medical conditions that restrict circulation, such as peripheral vascular disease, malnutrition, Raynaud’s phenomenon, or diabetes. Tobacco users may be at risk of severe frostbite because nicotine constricts blood vessels. People who use drugs or alcohol may not be aware of temperatures and their situation.

The prognosis can be life-changing.

“Many times, with frostbite in the first and second stages, although it is painful, it is about local wound care. People can be seen on an outpatient basis and do well,” Schafer said. lehighvalleylive.com. “In that third stage, which is serious, we give them a lot of time to see if the body can heal itself.

“Those who enter us unfortunately face amputations. Most of what we see are toe amputations, sometimes what’s called a transmetatarsal amputation, which is like the middle of the foot. And then in severe cases, it would be a below-knee amputation.”

The hospital stay can last a week, with the possibility of outpatient therapy afterwards.

Those at risk of severe frostbite should limit their time outdoors in dangerous wind chills to a maximum of 10 to 15 minutes, Schafer advised. When warming skin from the cold, use warm rather than hot water to avoid burning skin that may be experiencing decreased sensation.

it is also important to dress appropriatelywith layers, warm socks and good shoes, gloves, scarf and hat; Clothing should not be too tight, as it can cut off circulation, Schafer said.

Covering exposed skin and the head (where the body can lose much of its heat) and dressing in layers is also the advice of Matthew Togno, sports medicine coordinator at St. Luke’s University Health Network and athletic trainer. principal at Centenary University in Hackettstown.

“Some cold weather clothing tends to have an inner layer that allows evaporation from the skin,” he said. “And then you can have a midlayer that provides insulation. Then the outer layer should be wind and/or water resistant.

“The first layer should help evaporate any type of sweat on the skin, any type of water, and then insulate and protect from wind and water.”

Togno said he has never seen a case of frostbite in athletes since he became a coach in 2009, even though playing spring sports can mean spending time outdoors for extended periods during the winter.

“That’s because we do a lot of prevention,” he said. lehighvalleylive.com.

For athletes, that starts with proper medical history to identify those at highest risk for cold injuries: for example, a thin body composition or someone with a cardiovascular condition. Coaches and trainers also monitor weather conditions such as air temperature and wind speed and modify practices when necessary.

“Prevention is key,” Togno said.