Here is a quick mnemonic ” FEVER HYPOTHERMIA “ to remember about the basics of Fever & Hypothermia .
This can be valuable for patients as well as medical doctors, nurses & students doing their clinical rounds. You can also find it very useful for med exams like USMLE, NEET PG, FMGE, NExT & NCLEX exams
Fever and hypothermia are two medical conditions that involve changes in body temperature. Fever, also known as pyrexia, is a condition where the body temperature is higher than normal, usually above 100.4°F (38°C). It is typically caused by an infection or an inflammatory response to an infection or injury.
On the other hand, hypothermia is a condition where the body temperature drops below the normal range of 97.7°F to 99.5°F (36.5°C to 37.5°C). It can be caused by prolonged exposure to cold temperatures, immersion in cold water, or medical conditions that affect the body’s ability to regulate temperature.
Fever & Hypothermia Basics : How To Remember Easily ?
F – Fever is an elevation of body temperature that exceeds the normal daily variation and occurs in conjunction with an increase in the hypothalamic set point.
E – Essentially, decreases in heat loss from the skin during fever due to shunting of blood away from the periphery to the internal organs, making the person feel cold.
V – Vasoconstriction commences during fever, with the individual first noticing vasoconstriction in the hands and feet.
E – Excessive heat production can easily cause hyperthermia despite physiological and behavioral control of body temperature.
R – Rarely, the hypothalamic set point is elevated as a result of local trauma, hemorrhage, tumor, or intrinsic hypothalamic malfunction.
H – Hypothermia is characterized by a decrease in body temperature below the normal range.
Y – Hyperthermia is characterized by an uncontrolled increase in body temperature that exceeds the body’s ability to lose heat.
P – Patients with severe infections can develop hyperpyrexia, an extraordinarily high fever of >41.5°C (>106.7°F).
O – Patients with central nervous system hemorrhages most commonly experience hyperpyrexia.
T – The processes of heat conservation (vasoconstriction) and heat production (shivering and increased nonshivering thermogenesis) continue until the temperature of the blood bathing the hypothalamic neurons matches the new “thermostat setting.”
H – Hyperthermia can result from exogenous heat exposure or endogenous heat production, and it can be rapidly fatal.
E – Elevated temperature that exceeds the body’s ability to lose heat characterizes hyperthermia.
R – Rarely do patients with hypothalamic damage have supranormal body temperatures.
M – Most patients with hypothalamic damage have subnormal, not supranormal, body temperatures.
I – It is essential to distinguish between fever and hyperthermia since hyperthermia can be rapidly fatal and characteristically does not respond to antipyretics.
A – Abnormal hypothalamic function can cause hypothalamic fever, which is elevated temperature caused by abnormal hypothalamic function.
Mnemonic : FEVER HYPOTHERMIA
