A study of hypothermic patients presenting to a Mediterranean emergency department

A retrospective chart review was carried out in the adult Emergency Department of Mater Dei Hospital in the 'sunny warm Mediterranean island' Malta, on patients admitted with a rectal temperature of less than 35°C during the two consecutive winters of 2010-2011 and 2011-2012.

The aim of this study was to find any correlation among patients presenting with hypothermia and the weather conditions, age and residential background. We also studied their mortality outcomes.

All patient data were collected from the Emergency Department's medical records and patients' case notes. All 199 patients admitted with hypothermia during these two winters were included in the study: 78 patients in winter 1 and 121 patients in winter 2.

This showed that warm Malta also has its fair share of patients suffering from hypothermia during its winters. The minimum recorded temperatures ranged from +3.8 to +14.2°C in winter 1 and +3.6 to +13.1°C in winter 2. The majority of patients were suffering from either mild or moderate hypothermia, in roughly equal numbers. However, 4% of hypothermic admissions in the first winter and 7% in the colder second winter had severe hypothermia. Hypothermic admissions were most common among patients in their late seventies. Survival rates in primary hypothermia were better than in secondary hypothermia. The type of residence of the patient did not significantly affect the admission rate.