Cold weather injuries of the foot.
We’re finishing up a long winter here in Ohio. And that means that a lot of the patients I’m seeing have had cold weather exposure as a result of wrestling with mother nature.  Patients have been spending time outside shoveling and trying to clear out driveways and work areas. Subsequently, we’re seeing a number of different cold weather injuries. I thought it might be helpful to categorise these injuries. Let’s take a look at the terms pernio, frostnip, frostbite, trench foot, chillblains and immersion foot.
The type of cold injury that folks may sustain will vary with temperature and moisture. We typically think of frostbite as a cold, dry injury. Most cases of frostbite are caused by long exposure in sub zero weather. Frostbite is the term used when the fluid content within cells freezes. This freezing of the intracellular fluid actually results in dehydration of the cell and ultimately cell death. The longer the exposure, the deeper the cell damage.
Pernio and frostnip are two terms that are synonymous. Both describe
superficial skin damage due to cold exposure. We typically associate pernio and frostnip with a cold, damp environment. The difference between pernio/frostnip and frostbite is that the former can occur at temperature above freezing. Superficial cell death occurs that looks much like a burn. Superficial nerve damage may occur but usually resolves over the course of 12 months.
Trench foot and immersion foot are injuries that occur to the foot due to long exposure in a wet, cool environment. The difference between these two terms has to do with the temperature of the foot. With trench foot, we tend to think of a cooler environment, ie 35-50 degrees F. Immersion foot, on the other hand, describes injuries at warmer temperatures. Both trench foot and immersion foot result in skin damage and superficial nerve damage.
Chillblains describes residual, long lasting neurological defects caused by any of the cold/wet injuries described above. Chillblains symptoms include numbness of the feet and poor circulation.
Bundle up. It’s cold outside.Â
Jeffrey A. Oster, DPM
Medical Director
Myfootshop.com
Dr. Oster cannot answer medical questions or provide medical care through this blog.
Tags: chillblains, cold weather injuries, frostbite, frostnip, immersion foot, pernio, trench foot
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