Acute Medicine | Medicine of the elderly | Hypothermia in older people: causes and multifactorial nature

Hypothermia in older people: causes and multifactorial nature
Session overview
Description
This session looks at the definition and causes of non-exposure hypothermia in older people, how to treat it and how to prevent it.

Learning objectives
By the end of this session you will be able to:

• identify the severity of presenting hypothermia and how to treat this
• recognise the causes of hypothermia
• list the preventative approaches to hypothermia

Hypothermia is a common presentation in older people. It is important to recognise and treat appropriately as inappropriate treatment can increase mortality and morbidity. It is also important to recognise the causes of hypothermia and the preventative measures that can be taken to avoid a recurrence of the problem.

Hypothermia is often insidious in onset and can be best remembered by the phrase ‘grumbles, mumbles, stumbles, tumbles’.