While some enjoy sea bathing in the middle of winter, others risk their lives to bathe in rooms that are not heated enough. This is the unfortunate adventure that happened to a 34-year-old man, who ended up in the emergency room after being exposed.the airthe air Cold when you step out of your hot shower. He was later found by his family on the bathroom floor, covered in hives and in severe respiratory distress. It turns out that the patient, originally from Micronesia (A ArchipelagoArchipelago tropical Pacific Ocean), he developed a rare allergy to the cold when he arrived in Colorado where winterwinter Sometimes harsh. But while allergies to colds usually result in mild hives, the cold air in an inadequately heated bathroom caused him to go into actual anaphylactic shock.
Anaphylactic shock
When emergency services arrived, they injected him with epinephrine (a drug recommended for anaphylactic shock) and oxygen, but his breathing problems worsened. Taken to the emergency room, the patient is sweating profusely, his body is covered in rashes, and his level of consciousness is reduced to 14 on the Glasgow Coma Scale (which corresponds to mild coma). Treatment with intravenous epinephrine, antihistamines and SteroidsSteroids, his health condition eventually stabilized and then improved. Doctors confirm DiagnosticDiagnostic By using the allergic “ice cube test,” which involves keeping an ice cube in contact with the skin for five minutes, see if it causes an allergic reaction. After several hours, the man is finally able to return home without reactionreactionwith a recommendation to avoid exposure to cold water or cold air at all costs, and a prescription for an epinephrine auto-injector in case of emergency.
Did you know ?
Cold allergy is genetic or occurs during adulthood, with spontaneous remission after five years in half of the cases. These allergies are often secondary to an underlying pathology, such as cryoglobulinemia, syphilis, mononucleosis, AIDS, or taking certain medications. An allergic reaction is caused by the release of histamine, a molecule produced by mast cells that triggers an inflammatory response.
One in 2,000 people are affected
The case of this man described in the magazine Journal of Emergency Medicine, is very exceptional: cold allergy is usually limited to more or less severe hives, but in rare cases, as here, it can go as far as anaphylactic shock. This pathologypathology, which mainly affects young adults, occurs when exposed to cold air or cold water. It is also sometimes triggered by eating very cold food or drink. The most severe reactions occur in people swimming in ice water or when cold fluids are given intravenously. A study published in 1996 estimated that PrevalencePrevalence About 0.05% or one in 2,000 people in Europe.
Besides the inconvenience when outside air or the windthe wind Colds, cold allergies can also cause conflicts at work. In 2018, a study published in the journal Climacteric
reported a case of a 40-year-old woman suffering from hives when a colleague Air conditionerAir conditioner to remove its flush the heatthe heat Because of that MenopauseMenopause. The good old battle for the ideal temperature in the office.