How to prevent and treat frostbite

We are paging Dr. Paul to get his advice on frostbite prevention & treatment.

With the weekend off to an especially frigid start, and the weather expected to reach an overnight low of -30 C, the medical officer of health and CEO of the Eastern Ontario Health Unit says it’s important to be aware of frostbite.

“Over the next couple of days, when we have these -20, -30 temperatures, parents should be very leery and very aware of how long to keep the kids outdoors,” Dr. Paul Roumeliotis, A.K.A. Dr. Paul, said.

Dr. Paul joined CTV Your Morning Ottawa on Wednesday to share some tips to help prevent, recognize and treat frostbite.

“It’s just a matter of being aware,” Dr. Paul said. “Knowing how long your child is out there, and knowing the conditions around you and really, prevention is best.”

Preventing frostbite

According to Dr. Paul, being mindful of the temperature and using common sense is the best way to prevent frostbite. If severely cold temperatures are on the forecast, people should limit their time outdoors.

“Just be very mindful of going out and doing outdoor activities,” Dr. Paul said.

For those who will be spending time outdoors, Dr. Paul says it’s critical to dress for the weather.

“We want to dress warmly, wear layers, especially cover your ears, cover your nose, cover your fingers and so on,” Dr. Paul said.

“Wear dry clothing, because cold and wet actually precipitates, makes frostbite come on quicker. So, remove wet clothes.”

Doing outdoor activities like skiing, skating or snowboarding, won’t prevent frostbite. In fact, Dr. Paul says fast-paced activities can accelerate frostbite.

Recognizing frostbite

As Dr. Paul explains, frostbite is essentially the freezing of skin, and the first sign of it is numbness. It is most common in the extremities, including fingers, ears and nose.

“So, the early sign really is it starts becoming pale and then it starts to tingle. That’s when we know we’re starting frostbite.”

According to Ottawa Public Health, these are the four signs of frostbite:

• “Affected areas will look red, white, bluish-white, grayish-yellow, purplish, brown or ashen, depending on the severity of the condition and the person’s usual skin color.”
• “Affected areas will become painful.”
• “White, waxy-feeling patches will appear. This means skin is dying.”
• “Affected areas will then feel numb.”

Parents should be mindful of the early signs of frostbite in their children, as young ones may not always realize they’re experiencing symptoms, Dr. Paul says.

Treating frostbite

Dr. Paul says the best form of treatment is prevention. So, if early signs of frostbite appear, get out of the cold.

“If you feel that your fingers or any part of your body has been frost bitten, or your children, go inside immediately. Take that part of the body, or your whole body out of the cold,” he said.

The next step is to increase the blood supply to the affected area, which Dr. Paul says can be done by putting warmth on it.

“Don’t put hot, hot water. Some people put ice on it, and don’t do that,” he said. “Soak the area in warm water, you can actually also, if it’s your fingers, put them in your armpits, it’s very warm and it’ll soothe that.”

If the pain persists, and especially if the area becomes blue or blistery, it’s best to seek medical attention, Dr. Paul says.

“But we don’t want to get to that,” he said.

As Dr. Paul notes, severe frostbite can lead to hypothermia or potentially even amputation.

“That’s why you have to take it seriously and again, take all the precautions,” he said.

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