Skip to main navigation Skip to search Skip to main content

Exertional Heat Stroke, the Return to Play Decision, and the Role of Heat Tolerance Testing: A Clinician's Dilemma

Francis G. O'Connor*, Yuval Heled, Patricia A. Deuster

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

26 Scopus citations

Abstract

Exertional heat stroke (EHS) is a leading cause of preventable morbidity and mortality among both athletes and warfighters. Since current evidence suggests that the history of a prior event is an important risk factor for an EHS event, sports medicine providers can find post-EHS return to play/duty (RTP/D) decisions challenging. Heat tolerance testing is a tool that can help with such decisions by exposing the subject to a given heat load under controlled conditions to assess the presence or absence of heat tolerance. This special communication explores the challenge of the RTP/D after an EHS event and the potential role of heat tolerance testing in making this clinical decision.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)244-248
Number of pages5
JournalCurrent Sports Medicine Reports
Volume17
Issue number7
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Jul 2018

Cite this