What does a patient presenting with heat stroke need?

• A. Active cooling.
• B. Oral rehydration with water.
• C. Immediate application of warm blankets.
• D. No treatment unless the patient is sweating.

Answer: (A)

Heat stroke is a medical emergency where the body's ability to dissipate heat fails and core temperature climbs rapidly. The primary goal is to bring that core temperature down as quickly as possible to prevent brain injury and organ damage. Active cooling achieves this best, using methods that actively remove heat from the body—such as applying ice packs to the groin, armpits, and neck, or rapidly cooling the body with immersion in cold water or evaporative cooling with mist and fans. Oral fluids aren’t reliable in this situation because the patient may be confused or unable to swallow, and they don’t address the dangerous overheating. Wrapping the patient in warm blankets would add heat and worsen the condition, and waiting for sweating to occur isn’t reliable since heat stroke can occur with little or no sweating. So the immediate, best action is active cooling.