Page "Thermoregulation" Paragraph 106

Conversely, too high a temperature speeds up the metabolism of different tissues to such a rate that their metabolic capital is soon exhausted.

Blood that is too warm produces dyspnea by exhausting the metabolic capital of the respiratory centre ; heart rate is increased ; the beats then become arrhythmic and eventually cease.

The central nervous system is also profoundly affected by hyperthermia and delirium and convulsions may set in.

Consciousness may also be lost, propelling the person into a comatose condition.

These changes can sometimes also be observed in patients suffering from an acute fever.

The lower limit of temperature that humans can endure depends on many factors, but no one can survive a temperature of or above for very long.

Mammalian muscle becomes rigid with heat rigor at about 50 ° C, with the sudden rigidity of the whole body rendering life impossible.