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Kid
Safety
Medical experts emphasize risk of leaving children in locked cars
SAFETY: A closed
vehicle "becomes an oven" in hot weather, a Loma Linda
physician says.
BY MIKE SCHWARTZ
THE PRESS-ENTERPRISE
Never, but
never, leave an infant or young child unattended in a locked car,
not even for one minute, warn emergency-medicine and injury-prevention
specialists.
Doing so is
akin to cooking a loved one in an oven or hellish sauna, with potentially
lethal consequences.
As soon as
its doors close, a car's internal temperature rapidly climbs, explains
Dr. Michael A. Rodriguez, assistant professor of family and community
medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, Medical
Center.
"You could
have an outside temperature of 90 but inside the car it easily can
soar over 110 within a few minutes," said Rodriguez, who specializes
in injury prevention.
Before long,
the temperature may climb to 150 degrees or more, said Dr. Stephen
W. Corbett, medical director of the Loma Linda University Medical
Center emergency room.
"With
no air moving, your car becomes an oven. You probably can cook bread
at over 200 degrees," Corbett said. As the body starts dehydrating,
it starts shifting fluids to keep the heart, brain and lungs --
its three most vital systems -- functioning, said Dr. Conrad Salinas,
an attending emergency room physician at St. Bernardine Medical
Center in San Bernardino.
"Eventually
it reaches a point where it has a hard time keeping anything alive
anymore," Salinas said.
Blood pressure
drops, and heartbeat becomes irregular. Symptoms also may include
profuse sweating, headache, dizziness, nausea and vomiting.
Although the
body easily can handle internal temperatures up to 104 or more during
a fever, permanent damage may occur when body temperature climbs
over 107, Corbett said.
"The brain
is most vulnerable," he said. Heatstroke sets in when the brain
no longer is able to regulate body systems efficiently, Corbett
explained.
Toddlers are
at higher risk than more physically resilient older children, who
also may be able to open the door and escape.
Infants are
especially vulnerable, Corbett said.
"They're
not very good at shedding heat from their bodies," he said.
Children aren't
the only ones sensitive to heat, he said. Many elderly people die
during heat waves, and pets also can be harmed or killed by being
locked in overheated cars.
Nobody knows
exactly how long anyone -- no less a young child -- can tolerate
extreme heat before sustaining a permanent or fatal injury.
"Even
five minutes may be too much," Salinas said. "But there's
no way to predict it."
According to
Rodriguez, other variables include outside air temperature, the
amount of clothing worn, a car's color and even its angle to the
sun.
If a child
is accidentally left in a hot car and is found unresponsive, lethargic,
disoriented, flushed, profusely sweating or -- worse -- warm to
the touch but not sweating at all, it's a life-threatening medical
emergency.
Experts advise:
· Immediately
calling 911 for first-aid advice and paramedic assistance.
· Getting the child to an emergency room as soon as possible.
· Placing the child in a cool, shaded spot. If a fan is available,
let it blow on the child.
· Cooling the youngster by wetting down the face, body and
limbs with cool, wet towels. But ice water should not be used because
it can shock the system.
· Not trying to treat the condition at home by placing the
child in a tub of water. Heatstroke is very hard to treat, even
by specialists.
Knowing what
to do is important, Rodriguez said. But it's even more important
to realize that major injury and death from overheating are preventable.
"Do not
use your car as a baby sitter," he cautioned. "There's
just no excuse."
Published 7/3/2001
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