A BIOMECHANICAL ANALYSIS OF THE ESKIMO ROLL IN KAYAKING

The purpose of the present study was to develop a mechanical model of the Eskimo roll in kayaking, in order to eventually develop an Eskimo roll simulator. The Eskimo roll is a very difficult skill to master, as the starting position is a stable position upside down in the water. A land-based simulator would assist the teaching and learning of this skill in a safe environment, but accurate simulation of the skill is difficult. Several trials of the Eskimo roll were filmed while being performed in an indoor pool; using four different camera views. Two cameras were Gen-locked together to film the sagittal and frontal views of the skill from the pool deck. One underwater camera filmed the skill from underneath the kayak, and one overhead camera filmed the skill from the top of the three-meter diving board. This film data was used to input actual values into an equation developed to determine the torques required to right the kayak. A computer program was written to produce the torques from the equation, with estimates for each of the terms. The Eskimo roll was modelled as an irregular cylinder, rotating around the longitudinal axis of the system consisting of the kayak plus kayaker. The kayaker used the paddle to apply torques to the water, to overcome his inertia and move the kayak to the upright position. The inertia of the kayak was due to the mass of the kayak, the mass of the kayaker, the drag force of the water against the system, and the torque due to gravity which had to be overcome during the righting movements. The righting torques were due to the lift forces and drag forces applied by the kayaker, as well as the buoyant force of the water as rotation began. These torques had to be estimated from film data, and from tabled values of moment of inertia, drag, and lift. The peak torques due to lift were estimated to be 150 N.m, while the peak torques due to drag forces were found to be 300 N.m. These estimates will be used to assist in the development of an on-land simulator which can be rolled only by application of torques of this approximate magnitude and direction

The prehospital management of hypothermia - An up-to-date overview

Item does not contain fulltextBACKGROUND: Accidental hypothermia concerns a body core temperature of less than 35 degrees C without a primary defect in the thermoregulatory system. It is a serious threat to prehospital patients and especially injured patients, since it can induce a vicious cycle of the synergistic effects of hypothermia, acidosis and coagulopathy; referred to as the trauma triad of death. To prevent or manage deterioration of a cold patient, treatment of hypothermia should ideally begin prehospital. Little effort has been made to integrate existent literature about prehospital temperature management. The aim of this study is to provide an up-to-date systematic overview of the currently available treatment modalities and their effectiveness for prehospital hypothermia management. DATA SOURCES: Databases PubMed, EMbase and MEDLINE were searched using the terms: "hypothermia", "accidental hypothermia", "Emergency Medical Services" and "prehospital". Articles with publications dates up to October 2017 were included and selected by the authors based on relevance. RESULTS: The literature search produced 903 articles, out of which 51 focused on passive insulation and/or active heating. The most effective insulation systems combined insulation with a vapor barrier. Active external rewarming interventions include chemical, electrical and charcoal-burning heat packs; chemical or electrical heated blankets; and forced air warming. Mildly hypothermic patients, with significant endogenous heat production from shivering, will likely be able to rewarm themselves with only insulation and a vapor barrier, although active warming will still provide comfort and an energy-saving benefit. For colder, non-shivering patients, the addition of active warming is indicated as a non-shivering patient will not rewarm spontaneously. All intravenous fluids must be reliably warmed before infusion. CONCLUSION: Although it is now accepted that prehospital warming is safe and advantageous, especially for a non-shivering hypothermic patient, this review reveals that no insulation/heating combinations stand significantly above all the others. However, modern designs of hypothermia wraps have shown promise and battery-powered inline fluid warmers are practical devices to warm intravenous fluids prior to infusion. Future research in this field is necessary to assess the effectiveness expressed in patient outcomes