WEB DESK: The number of people going to emergency rooms due to heat-related illnesses has already reached 1,000 here this year, amid consecutive scorching-hot days, health authorities said, Wednesday.
According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , the heat-related illnesses emergency room monitoring system operated by 500 emergency rooms nationwide has reported 995 patients such heat illnesses since May 20 when the monitoring system began to operate, to July 28.
The figure, including four deaths, is up 3.4 percent from last year’s 962.
This year, 29.5 percent of the patients with heat-related illnesses were 65 years of age or older, and 78.7 percent were male.
Medical conditions arising from the intensely hot weather conditions mainly occurred outdoors (82 percent) such as at workplaces (29.3 percent) and rice fields (18.1 percent).
Related illnesses include heat stroke, which causes the central nervous system, which regulates body temperature, to lose control due to overheating, as well as heat exhaustion, which causes muscle cramps due to a lack of salt, potassium and magnesium in the body due to excessive perspiration, and heat-induced fainting, which is caused by a lack of blood flow to the brain.
The health authorities emphasized that illness caused by hot weather is preventable, and encouraged people to drink water often, seek cool places and refrain from outdoor activities during hot times.
Ji Young-mi, head of the KDCA, said, “Just by following safety advice, you can considerably prevent heat-related illnesses. Particularly people with elderly parents should check in to on them to see if they are following the safety tips.”
The KDCA made heat illness prevention manuals in May and recently developed the “Guide for Prevention of Heat Illnesses at Crowd Meeting Events,” which can occur during outdoor gatherings. The manual is available on the KDCA’s website.
