aetiology
Last reviewed 01/2018
The cause(s) of hypothermia in any patient should be investigated vigorously. The aetiology includes:
- decreased heat production:
- hypopituitarism
- hypothyroidism
- severe malnutrition
- hypoglycaemia
- inactivity
- increased loss of heat:
- exposure
- erythroderma
- Paget's disease
- alcoholic intoxication
- derangement of thermoregulation:
- pneumonia
- septicaemia
- myocardial infarction
- heart failure
- peritonitis
- central causes:
- drugs:
- barbiturates
- phenothiazines
- diabetic ketoacidosis
- neurological diseases e.g. Wernicke's encephalopathy
- autonomic dysfunction:
- diabetes mellitus
- Parkinson's disease
- Shy-Drager syndrome
- combination of above e.g. general anaesthesia with surgery