Wilderness Medicine Podcast #29: Solar Water Disinfection, Hypothermia, Mountain Rescue, and Marine Medicine
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Mar 15, 2023 Gordon Giesbrecht, an authority in wilderness medicine, discusses thrilling and practical topics. He shares a gripping hypothermia case handled with innovative techniques. The conversation dives into solar water disinfection, showcasing how sunlight can purify water even at high altitudes. Giesbrecht also explores the challenges of mountain rescue operations and highlights essential training for volunteers. Additionally, he navigates marine medicine, covering risks from shark bites and microbial threats, urging a confident, informed approach to nature.
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Hypothermia Case
- A 20-year-old woman was found unconscious in her car during a cold spell, experiencing ventricular fibrillation.
- Despite multiple defibrillations and epinephrine, she remained in v-fib until rewarming with improvised methods and a dual sequential defibrillation technique.
Solar Water Disinfection
- Solar water disinfection (SODIS) uses sunlight to inactivate microbes, providing safe drinking water in austere settings.
- SODIS is user-friendly and significantly cheaper than other methods like filtration, making it ideal for wilderness medicine and disaster relief.
High Altitude SODIS
- SODIS is effective at high altitudes and works faster at higher altitudes within the first two hours of exposure.
- Plastic water bottles are more effective than Nalgene bottles for SODIS, showing a greater disinfection rate.