Hypothermia

Hypothermia is a medical condition in which the victim's core body temperature has dropped to significantly below normal and normal metabolism begins to be impaired. This begins to occur when the core temperature drops below 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit). If body temperature falls below 32 °C (90 °F), the condition can become critical and eventually fatal. Body temperatures below 27 °C (80 °F) are almost uniformly fatal, though body temperatures as low as 14 °C (57.5 °F) have been known to survive.

Related Topics:
Body temperature - Metabolism - Core temperature - Celsius - Fahrenheit

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For unknown reasons, people who fall critically unconscious (and arguably die, though there are some who argue that any reversible condition is not, by definition, death) in very cold water can, in rare cases, be resuscitated, even though they would be expected to have died of drowning and/or hypothermia. See Mammalian diving reflex.

Related Topics:
Die - Mammalian diving reflex

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There are two types of hypothermia, acute and chronic. Acute hypothermia is the more dangerous; the body temperature goes down very swiftly, often in a matter of seconds or minutes, for example when a victim falls through an ice-covered lake. Chronic hypothermia occurs when the body temperature goes down over a longer period of time.

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