Heat-related emergency room visits increased in 2023, according to a CDC study
People typically don't think of themselves as at high risk of succumbing to the heat or at greater risk than before, leading them to underestimate how a heat wave might land them in the emergency room, said Kristie L. Ebi, a professor at University of Washington. University of Washington, expert on the health risks of extreme heat.“The heat you were asked to handle 10 years ago is not the heat you are asked to handle today,” he said. One of the first symptoms of heat illness can be confusion, she added, making it more difficult for someone to respond without the help of others.What happens next: States and hospitals are preparing for another summer of extreme heat.Dr. Srikanth Paladugu, an epidemiologist with the New Mexico Department of Health, said the state had nearly 450 heat-rel...