Model of human thermoregulation for intermittent regional cooling

Xiaojiang Xu1, Larry G Berglund, Samuel N Cheuvront

  • 1U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, Biophysics and Biomedical Modeling Division, Natick, MA 01760, USA. xiaojiang.xu@us.army.mil

Abstract

Related Concept Videos

Body Temperature01:25

Body Temperature

The body's temperature, measured in degrees, is determined by the balance between heat production and dissipation to the surrounding environment. For instance, if exercising vigorously, the body will produce more heat, causing sweat and dissipating that heat. Despite extreme environmental conditions and physical exertion, the human temperature-control system maintains a constant core body temperature (the temperature of deep tissues, which are the tissues located beneath the skin and other...
Thermosensation01:43

Thermosensation

Peripheral thermosensation is the perception of external temperature. A change in temperature (on the surface of the skin and other tissues) is detected by a family of temperature-sensitive ion channels called Transient Receptor Potential, or TRP, receptors. These receptors are located on free nerve endings. Those detecting cold temperatures are closer to the surface of the skin than the nerve endings detecting warmth. These thermoTRP channels, while temperature selective, have relatively...
Decreased Body Temperature01:29

Decreased Body Temperature

A decreased body temperature can occur in patients with hypothermia and frostbite. Heat loss with extended cold exposure overpowers the body's ability to create heat, resulting in hypothermia. Core temperature readings help classify hypothermia. Mild hypothermia is temperatures between 32 °C (89.6 °F) and 35°C (95 °F) and is caused by impaired thermoregulation. Moderate hypothermia is temperatures between 28 C (82.4 °F) and 32 °C (89.6 °F) caused by sustained extreme cold exposure, and severe...
Mechanism of heat transfer01:19

Mechanism of heat transfer

Understanding heat transfer mechanisms is essential for understanding how our bodies maintain balance in different environmental conditions. When the environment is thermoneutral, the body is in a state of balance, neither using nor releasing energy to maintain its core temperature. However, when the environment is not thermoneutral, the body employs four heat transfer mechanisms to maintain homeostasis: conduction, convection, evaporation, and radiation. These mechanisms facilitate heat...
Mechanisms of Heat Transfer II01:20

Mechanisms of Heat Transfer II

In convection, thermal energy is carried by the large-scale flow of matter. Ocean currents and large-scale atmospheric circulation, which result from the buoyancy of warm air and water, transfer hot air from the tropics toward the poles and cold air from the poles toward the tropics. The Earth’s rotation interacts with those flows, causing the observed eastward flow of air in the temperate zones. Convection dominates heat transfer by air, and the amount of available space for the airflow...