Elaine was enjoying a pleasant day on the ski slopes at Winter Park. When she go

Question

Elaine was enjoying a pleasant day on the ski slopes at Winter Park. When she got on the lift to the top
of Parsenn Bowl (12,000 ft), the weather was fine—windy, but sunny. During the 5 or 10 minute ride, the weather changed suddenly; it became a white-out, with icy surface snow, blowing snow, a very strong wind, and extremely low visibility. Many people fell as they got off the lift, including Elaine. However, she got up and joined her family members as they stood, wondering just how they were going to get down
the mountain. Meanwhile, the lift closed due to the terrible conditions (50-mile-an-hour wind and a temperature of 20° F). As she adjusted her stance, Elaine somehow twisted and fell again, which resulted in external rotation of her right knee. ere was no pain at the time and she thought she could get up and prepare to get down the mountain, but her knee was too unstable. While she sat on the icy surface, her husband notified the lift operator to call the Ski Patrol. In about 20 minutes they arrived and put her on a sled, which they skied down the slope; when they reached the Ski Patrol headquarters, they transferred the sled to a snowmobile and promptly got her down the mountain and into the emergency room

Questions

1. What mechanisms did Elaine’s body employ to maintain homeostasis?

a. Where are the sensors for cold?

b. Where is the “thermostat” of the body located?

c. What is the effector (i.e., what tissues are involved) for the blood vessel constriction? For the shivering?

2. What areas of the body would be the most vulnerable to frostbite?

Explanation / Answer

1. Inorder to mantain homeostasis, there is vasoconstriction of the cutaneous veins so as to gather heat. Another homeostatic mechanism is that of shivering which also helps in creating warmth.

a. The sensors for cold are at the thermoreceptors located in the skin.

b. The thermostsat of the body is located in the hypothalamus.

c. The effector for blood vesssel constriction is tunica media layer of blood vessels whereas the effector for shivering is skelatal muscles.

2. The areas of the body most vulnerabe to frostbite are fingers, toes, ears, nose. These areas normally recieve limited blood flow.

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