Hypothermia in the aged: A study of the role of cold-sensitivity

The thermal preference and thermal feeling data show that some of the subjects experienced feelings of warmth and comfort in quite cool environments, which might be partially responsible for the high incidence of cold exposure, and of hypothermia, in old people.

Abstract

In this study the role of thermal sensitivity in the determination of the thermal environment in the dwelling of 18 elderly female subjects was studied. The thermal environments found in these dwellings covered a wide range of temperatures, though all were below the temperature considered to be optimal for thermal comfort. While only three subjects stated explicitly that they would prefer to use more heating in the winter, it would seem that as many as six others were not completely satisfied with their thermal environments but could not afford to use more heating. However, for the remaining subjects, including some who lived in the coolest environments, the temperatures were found by them to be satisfactory. The two factors, thermal preference and income, seemed to play a major and equal part in the determination of the thermal environments. The thermal preference and thermal feeling data show that some of the subjects experienced feelings of warmth and comfort in quite cool environments. These apparently lower warmth and cold thresholds in some old people were also observed in two earlier laboratory studies by other investigators. It is considered that the acceptability of low-temperature environments resulting from lower warmth and cold thresholds might be partially responsible for the high incidence of cold exposure, and of hypothermia, in old people.