The
saying that ‘prevention is better than treatment’ is particularly true
for frostbite, which, thankfully, is normally preventable. But what do you do in the field when those
grayish-white frostnip spots appear on your ears, cheeks, fingers or nose? And what do you do if freezing is deeper than
just the first layers of skin?
Field Treatment...
If
a body part becomes frozen in the field, protect it from further freezing and damage.
Start by removing any jewelry such as
rings, watches, or anything that impedes circulation from around the extremity.
Next you must decide whether to try to thaw
the body part in the field, or not.
If
the degree of freezing is stage one and conditions allow for it then spontaneous
or slow rewarming should be attempted, by moving to shelter and warming the
frost nipped part with body heat.
Spontaneous or passive thawing
Stage
one freezing or ‘frostnip’ is the only one that can be easily treated in the
field. Body heat is the best way to
treat frostnip, rewarm fingers by pulling your hands up into your sleeves or
even all the way into your coat, or even by sliding them between your thighs. Put your warm hands on your frost nipped
cheeks, nose or ears to rewarm them. Put
your frozen feet onto the bare skin of your buddy’s belly.
Rapid rewarming
If
the frostbite is superficial stage two or deep stage three and the environmental
and situational conditions are such that the thawed part might refreeze, then it
is better to let it stay frozen. Also,
if you are in the field far from medical care and must walk out to reach safety,
then don’t thaw that frozen extremity. While
you can walk on frostbitten toes, it is not a good idea to walk on an entirely
frostbitten foot, unless you absolutely must, because this can cause further
damage to already injured tissues. If you
must walk out, then the frozen foot should be padded, splinted, and kept as
immobile as possible to reduce further damage.
However,
if the part can be thawed and kept thawed then rapid rewarming should be
attempted. According to George Rodway, in
“Summary of Wilderness Medical Society Practice Guidelines for the Prevention
and Treatment of Frostbite Field”, rapid rewarming in a water bath has been
shown to result in better outcomes than slow rewarming with body heat for
deeply frost bitten areas.
Once
the parts are thawed, bulky, dry gauze dressings should be applied to the
thawed parts for protection and wound care. Place dressings loosely between the fingers
and toes and expect swelling, so wrap loosely to allow for swelling without putting
pressure on the underlying tissue. Also,
aloe vera can be applied topically to the thawed tissue before applying
dressings and may improve healing.
Remember
an ounce of prevention is far cheaper than a pound of cure, so avoid frostbite
or take care of it when it is only frostnip.
Don’t forget to come back next week and read about improvised
tourniquets as part of our Stop the Bleed series.
I
hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and look for me
on YouTube at BandanaMan Productions for other related videos, HERE. Don’t forget to follow me on both The
Woodsman’s Journal Online, HERE,
and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube. If you have questions, as always, feel free
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That
is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!
Sources
Chaney, Capt. Robert D.
USN; “Cold Weather Medicine: An Ounce of Prevention”, Marine Corps Gazette,
February 1981, page 43, https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Marine_Corps_Gazette/ZmlNAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22Cold+weather+medicine%22+chaney&pg=RA1-PA42&printsec=frontcover,
accessed January 31, 2026
Giesbrecht, Gordon G. and
Wilkerson, James A.; Hypothermia, Frostbite and Other Cold Injuries:
Prevention, Survival, Rescue, Treatment and Treatment, https://books.google.com/books?id=ayeercQ9DEwC&pg=PA74#v=onepage&q&f=false,
[© 2006 The Mountaineers], page 80 to 81, accessed January 31, 2026
Nelson, Richard K.; Alaskan
Eskimo Exploitation of the Sea Ice Environment, August 1966, [Arctic
Aeromedical Laboratory (U.S.); Technical Documentary Report], page 39, https://www.google.com/books/edition/Technical_Documentary_Report/QgrlAAAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=warming+frozen+feet+on+someones+abdomen&pg=PA39&printsec=frontcover,
accessed January 31, 2026
Rodway, George W., PhD; “Summary of
Wilderness Medical Society Practice Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment
of Frostbite: 2024 Update of Pre-Hospital Recommendations “, APRN, September
23, 2024, Volume 41, Issue 3, https://wms.org/magazine/magazine/1494/Frostbite-Summary-2024/default.aspx#:~:text=Rapid%20field%20rewarming%20of%20frostbite&text=Rapid%20rewarming%20by%20water%20bath,at%20definitive%20care, accessed January 31, 2026
Wikimedia,
“Frost bite of the toes from climbing mount Logan”, June 4, 2012, by Dr. S.
Falz, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Frost_bite.jpg,
accessed January 31, 2026
Wikimedia; “Frostbitten
hands: marg's fingers after the descent of Aconcagua”, by Winky, April 29,
2005, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Frostbitten_hands.jpg,
accessed January 31, 2026
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