hydrocution

English

Noun

hydrocution (uncountable)

1. The situation where blood vessels dilated by the heat contract suddenly, when cold water is applied to the skin, leading to cardiac arrest.
   • 1987, Roy J. Shephard, The 1987 Year Book of Sports Medicine, →OCLC, page 134:

     Although most swimming accidents occur because of insufficient swimming skills, many are caused by "hydrocution" or "thermodifferential shock."

   • 2019 June 26, “Heatwave 'hell' claims first lives as temperatures soar above 40 degrees Celsius across Europe”, in Telegraph‎^[1]:

     French firemen warned people to enter the water gradually to accustom the body to temperature changes or risk hydrocution in which blood vessels dilated by the heat contract suddenly, raising the risk of cardiac arrest.

Synonyms

• cold shock response

Related terms

• electrocution

French

Pronunciation

• ^{(mute h)} IPA^(key): /i.dʁɔ.ky.sjɔ̃/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

hydrocution f (countable and uncountable, plural hydrocutions)

1. immersion syncope

Further reading

• “hydrocution”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.