A Comparison of Mountain Rescue Casualty Bags in a Cold, Windy Environment☆

Grant, S.; Dowsett, David; Hutchison, Colin A.; Connor, Tracy; Grant, P T; Watt, Martin

doi:10.1580/1080-6032(2002)013[0036:acomrc]2.0.co;2

Cited by 9 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…27,28 In the prehospital setting, many different materials and products are used for insulating patients against the cold. Some studies have been conducted to evaluate and compare materials and products, [29][30][31][32][33] but, recommendations for what should be used in the field mostly depend on tradition and experience, not on scientific evidence. Considering today's demands on evidence-based medicine and to contribute to prehospital guidelines on protection against cold, a thermal manikin was used to evaluate thermal insulation properties of different blankets and rescue bags commonly used in prehospital rescue and ambulance services in different wind conditions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Protection Against Cold in Prehospital Care—Thermal Insulation Properties of Blankets and Rescue Bags in Different Wind Conditions

Henriksson

Lundgren

Kuklane

et al. 2009

Prehosp. Disaster med.

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In a cold, wet, or windy environment, cold exposure can be considerable for an injured or ill person. The subsequent autonomous stress response initially will increase circulatory and respiratory demands, and as body core temperature declines, the patient's condition might deteriorate. Therefore, the application of adequate insulation to reduce cold exposure and prevent body core cooling is an important part of prehospital primary care, but recommendations for what should be used in the field mostly depend on tradition and experience, not on scientific evidence. Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the thermal insulation properties in different wind conditions of 12 different blankets and rescue bags commonly used by prehospital rescue and ambulance services. Methods:The thermal manikin and the selected insulation ensembles were setup inside a climatic chamber in accordance to the modified European Standard for assessing requirements of sleeping bags. Fans were adjusted to provide low (< 0.5 m/s), moderate (2-3 m/s) and high (8-9 m/s) wind conditions. During steady state thermal transfer, the total resultant insulation value, I tr (m 2°C /Wclo; where °C = degrees Celcius, and W = watts), was calculated from ambient air temperature (°C), manikin surface temperature (°C), and heat flux (W/m 2 ). Results: In the low wind condition, thermal insulation of the evaluated ensembles correlated to thickness of the ensembles, ranging from 2.0 to 6.0 clo (1 clo = 0.155 m 2°C /W), except for the reflective metallic foil blankets that had higher values than expected. In moderate and high wind conditions, thermal insulation was best preserved for ensembles that were windproof and resistant to the compressive effect of the wind, with insulation reductions down to about 60-80% of the original insulation capacity, whereas wind permeable and/or lighter materials were reduced down to about 30-50% of original insulation capacity. Conclusions:The evaluated insulation ensembles might all be used for prehospital protection against cold, either as single blankets or in multiple layer combinations, depending on ambient temperatures. However, with extended outdoor, on-scene durations, such as during prolonged extrications or in multiple casualty situations, the results of this study emphasize the importance of using a windproof and compression resistant outer ensemble to maintain adequate insulation capacity.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Protection Against Cold in Prehospital Care—Thermal Insulation Properties of Blankets and Rescue Bags in Different Wind Conditions

Henriksson

Lundgren

Kuklane

et al. 2009

Prehosp. Disaster med.

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“…9 A 2-layer construction of a casualty covering is thought to provide higher thermal insulation and to better restrict air movements in the bag than a 1-layer covering. 6 Correspondingly, it is suggested that the combination of a vaportight layer and dry, insulating layer is the most effective covering system for preventing hypothermia in a moderate wind and with wet clothing. This combination was shown to increase skin temperatures the most, to lower metabolic rate, and to provide good thermal comfort after covering a precooled person wearing wet clothing.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating Cold, Wind, and Moisture Protection of Different Coverings for Prehospital Maritime Transportation–A Thermal Manikin and Human Study

Jussila¹,

Rissanen²,

Parkkola³

et al. 2014

Prehosp. Disaster med.

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“…In terms of UK-based human data, Grant et al described work comparing the insulating ability of three casualty bags utilised by Scottish MRTs with human subjects by under-defined conditions of an ambient air temperature at −10 °C and a wind speed of 3 m/s [18]. Core and skin temperatures were recorded for up to 60 min.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Consequently, treatment of accidental hypothermia is generally focused on minimising any further heat loss from the casualty by wrapping them in water-proof/wind-proof thermal bags of which there are many varieties [18–24]. The location of the definitive treatment centre is also considered [16].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Measurements of rates of cooling of a manikin insulated with different mountain rescue casualty bags

et al. 2017

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BackgroundAccidental hypothermia is common in those who sustain injuries in remote environments. This is unpleasant and associated with adverse effects on subsequent patient outcomes. To minimise further heat loss, a range of insulating systems are available to mountain rescue teams although the most effective and cost-efficient have yet to be determined.MethodsUnder ambient, still, dry, air conditions, a thermal manikin was filled with water at a temperature of 42 °C and then placed into a given insulation system. Water temperature was then continuously observed via an in-dwelling temperature sensor linked to a PROPAQ 100 series monitor and recorded every 10 min for 130 min. This method was repeated for each insulating package.ResultsThe vacuum mattress/Pertex©/fibrepile blanket system, either on its own or coupled with the Wiggy bag, was the most efficient with water temperatures only decreasing by 3.2 °C over 130 min. This was followed by the heavy-weight casualty bags without the vacuum mattress/Pertex©/fibrepile blanket system, decreasing by 4.2–4.3 °C. With the Blizzard bag, a decline in water temperature of 5.4 °C was seen over the study duration while a decrease of 9.5 °C was noted when the plastic survival bag was employed.ConclusionsUnder the still-air conditions of the study, the vacuum mattress/Pertex©/fibrepile blanket was seen to offer comparable insulation effectiveness compared to be both heavy-weight casualty bags. In turn, these three systems appeared more efficient at insulating the manikin than the Blizzard bag or plastic survival bag.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13728-017-0055-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorised users.

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A Comparison of Mountain Rescue Casualty Bags in a Cold, Windy Environment☆

Cited by 9 publications

References 18 publications

Protection Against Cold in Prehospital Care—Thermal Insulation Properties of Blankets and Rescue Bags in Different Wind Conditions

Protection Against Cold in Prehospital Care—Thermal Insulation Properties of Blankets and Rescue Bags in Different Wind Conditions

Evaluating Cold, Wind, and Moisture Protection of Different Coverings for Prehospital Maritime Transportation–A Thermal Manikin and Human Study

Measurements of rates of cooling of a manikin insulated with different mountain rescue casualty bags

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