Signs and treatment when children have heatstroke

When seeing your child showing signs of lethargy, red face, hot body, fever over 40 degrees Celsius, parents need to take the child to a ventilated place, remove all things that hinder breathing such as shirt buttons, pants buttons to cool down.

Giving your baby enough water and micronutrients will help cool him down and prevent heatstroke.

PediatricianTrinh Ngoc Binh - Cho Ray Hospital said that there are many risks for children if they play and do activities under the hot sun. However, if you just choose the right time, supplement nutrition, and rehydrate promptly according to the instructions below, children will have a happy and healthy summer.

Don't go out in the middle of the summer

According to Dr. Binh, to avoid heatstroke, parents should not let their children go out between 10am and 3pm. This is the time when the sun is at its strongest, so the risk of heatstroke is very high. At the same time, children should stay away from places with strong reflected light such as sand, glass, mirrors, and should only play in the shade under trees...

When your baby needs to exercise outdoors in the sun, parents should take their baby out in the sun a few days before so that their body can get used to it. In addition, avoid overexerting your baby. If your baby feels uncomfortable, stop exercising immediately and go to a cool place to rest.

Rehydration

There is an immutable rule in the summer, which is to carry water with you. Always remind your children to drink water, do not let them play too much, until they are too thirsty to drink the whole bottle, it is not good for their health.

Eat lots of green vegetables and fruits

Vegetables and fruits such as squash, bitter melon, cucumber, pumpkin, tomato, lettuce, coconut water, watermelon... not only help replenish water for the body, but also have a cooling effect, effectively preventing heatstroke.

Children should not be allowed outside between 10am and 3pm.

Signs of heatstroke in children

According to Dr. Binh, children with heatstroke often show signs of fatigue, lethargy, red face, hot body, high fever over 40 degrees Celsius, no sweating, strong pulsation of blood vessels in the neck and temples. In addition, children may also have headaches due to rapid heartbeat, difficulty breathing, slow and inaccurate movements...

In severe cases, in addition to the above symptoms, children may have cramps that cause the body to stiffen, muscles to ache but then become limp, abdominal pain, vomiting, lethargy, loss of consciousness. Children may even have convulsions, epilepsy, not understand what others are saying or stop breathing... These are very serious cases, if not treated quickly, they can easily die.

Place the child in a cool place and give them cold drinks until they feel better.

How to handle

Heatstroke can be life-threatening for children. Therefore, parents need to stay calm and quickly take their children to the nearest emergency room or call a doctor immediately to ensure their safety. During that time:

- Immediately take the child to a cool, airy place. Remove anything that obstructs breathing such as buttons, pants or long pants to cool down. Disperse people around, and fan the child gently, not directly in the face.

- Use a clean towel soaked in cool water to wipe the whole body. Apply the towel to the forehead, chest, armpits, arms, and thighs to open the baby's pores and release heat. According to Dr. Binh, taking fever-reducing medicine at this time is ineffective. In case of coma, immersing the child in cold water can save the child's life. When the dangerous symptoms have subsided, rehydrate and replenish electrolytes by giving the child salt water (4-5g of salt in one liter of water), fruit juice, or oral rehydration solution until the child is thirsty.

However, parents should take special note not to give their children anything to eat or drink when they are not fully awake. Wait until they are awake before giving them food or drink to replenish the lost water and salt. Children should drink slowly, little by little to avoid vomiting, not more than 300ml at a time.

- After receiving timely first aid, the above measures should still be continued in the car on the way to the hospital, because they are very useful for the subsequent treatment of heatstroke.

According to VNE