TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2015//
TI  - Return to duty/play after exertional heat injury: do we have all the answers? A lesson from two case studies
JO  - Disaster and military medicine
A1  - Ketko, Itay
A1  - Druyan, Amit
A1  - Yanovich, Ran
A1  - Epstein, Yoram
A1  - Heled, Yuval
SP  - e18
EP  - e18
VL  - 1
IS  - 
N2  - BACKGROUND: The common practice in the Israel defense Forces is that exertional heat related injury patients undergo a heat tolerance test 6-8 weeks post event as part of the "return to duty" process. In the case of a positive heat tolerance test the individual is classified as heat intolerant, in some cases however, the thermoregulatory recovery may be longer (several months), and therefore a second heat tolerance test is scheduled 6-8 weeks later. The presented case reports emphasize the possibility of different recovery periods of the thermoregulatory center and the distinction between congenital and acquired physiological heat intolerance. CASE DESCRIPTION: Two young healthy males (A and B) were diagnosed with exertional heat related injury during a pre-recruitment sorting process. Both underwent a heat tolerance test, and were found heat intolerant. During the next months they repeated the test several times. Patient A was finally diagnosed as heat tolerant and patient B was diagnosed as heat intolerant. <br><br>CONCLUSION: Susceptibility to heat is a significant determinant for active young people such as athletes and soldiers. Both cases emphasize the importance of the heat tolerance test (and repeated test when needed) as a criteria for an exertional heat related injury patient to return to duty/play and to perform intense physical activities. These cases also emphasize the effectiveness and sensitivity of the test in identifying a temporary and a permanent state of heat intolerance.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 2054-314X
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s40696-015-0010-3
ID  - ref1
ER  -