title: The effect of cold stimulation to the face on the metabolic rate of the febrile piglet.
abstract: Sudden infant death syndrome has been associated with winter climates, infection, and overwrapping of babies. The hypothesis has been tested in this laboratory that two different causes of increased metabolic rate, high core temperature (via the van't Hoff or 'Q10' effect) and face-cooling, might synergistically induce hyperthermia. This proved not to be the case. We now report on a 'febrile' state adding Salmonella abortus equi pyrogens. The combination of face-cooling and pyrogen administration to 14 already hot piglets produced an increase in oxygen consumption of 47% in 6 of the animals (19% overall). Face-cooling alone caused a 6.5% fall in oxygen consumption, and injection of pyrogens alone had no effect on oxygen consumption. We conclude that there may be a danger of life-threatening hyperthermia in the combination of a cold face and febrile state.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, University of Otago Medical School, Dunedin, New Zealand.
authors.forename: L J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Voss
authors.forename: B C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Galland
authors.forename: D P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Bolton
authors.forename: B J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Taylor
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001831:Body Temperature; D003080:Cold Temperature; D004423:Ear / Q000503:physiopathology; D005145:Face / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D005334:Fever / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D010101:Oxygen Consumption; D012007:Rectum / Q000503:physiopathology; D012119:Respiration; D013552:Swine