Cold and Heat

The skin has a fundamental role in preserving human body homeostasis. This balance is influenced by cutaneous blood flow, basal metabolic rate, shivering, and sweating. The degree of cutaneous injury is also influenced by the type of heat or cold source, the duration of exposure, temperature, skin thickness, and individual predisposition. The skin has the capacity to adapt to some changes in temperature, but sometimes these changes can cause severe damage and induce skin diseases. The etiopathogenesis of many diseases caused by cold remains poorly understood, but research suggests that the disruption in the regulation of dermal blood flow has an important role. Burns are very common in our daily life and can be indubitably dangerous. It is crucial that doctors in general know how to manage burns, and it is also important that people in general know how to deal with this problem, because in many cases this knowledge can help to minimize damage in primary care. This chapter highlights the epidemiology, clinical presentation, and current therapeutic approach to the most important diseases associated with heat and cold, namely frostbite, acrocyanosis, chilblains, cold urticaria, cryoglobulinemia, cold panniculitis, burns, and erythema ab igne.