The medical team is assessing a newly admitted patient who is hypothermic following a night spent lost on a ski slope

Question

The health care professionals would recognize that which of the following phenomena most likely contributed to minimizing the client's heat loss in a cold environment?
A)
The high heat conductivity of subcutaneous tissue protected against core heat loss.
B)
Increased blood flow to the outer shell prevented superficial freezing and loss of heat.
C)
The tissue thickness of the outer shell increased and preserved heat.
D)
Shell temperature dropped, minimizing the temperature variance between the core temperature and environmental temperature.

Answer 1

Ans:
C

Feedback:

The thickness of the outer shell is modifiable in response to the environmental temperature and can be increased through decreased blood flow. Subcutaneous tissue provides protection due to its low, not high, conductivity. Blood flow decreases to the outer shell in low temperatures, and the lowering of the shell temperature does not necessarily minimize heat loss.