Types of First Aid Shocks and How to Treat Them

When a person experiences a shock, it can be very serious. The two main types of shocks are anaphylactic and cardiogenic.

Anaphylactic shock is also known as anaphylaxis and can occur after an allergic reaction to something such as food or medication. Cardiogenic shock is another life-threatening condition that occurs when the heart isn’t pumping enough blood to maintain normal circulation.

But that’s not all; there’s much more to learn about shocks. This post discuss all the types of first aid shocks, their symptoms and how to treat them.

What is a Shock and Why is it an Emergency?

Shock is the sudden onset of a serious illness caused by blood loss, dehydration, or severe infection. It can be life-threatening if not treated right away.

Shock is a medical emergency. It’s different from other medical emergencies because it can lead to death if not treated quickly.

Shock happens when the body is unable to get enough oxygen or nutrients. Blood pressure drops, so blood isn’t pumped properly through the body. Heart rate and breathing speed up, but they’re not able to provide enough oxygen to your organs, muscles and brain cells.

As shock progresses, the body’s internal organs begin to fail. If not treated immediately and effectively, shock can lead to death. However, if you know how to recognize the signs and symptoms of shock and how to provide first aid assistance for shock victims, you may be able to save someone’s life.

Causes of first aid shocks

Shock can be caused by many different things, including:

  • Dehydration,
  • heart problems.
  • trauma
  • Severe bleeding – internal or external
  • Burns – chemical or thermal
  • Poisoning – with medication or chemicals
  • Severe allergic reactions
  • Infections – bacterial, viral or fungal

Symptoms of shock

If you have any of the following symptoms, you may be in shock:

  • Cool, clammy skin, paleness or bluish tinge to lips or fingernails
  • Rapid breathing and heart rate (pulse)
  • Weak pulse that may be difficult to find
  • Confusion or unconsciousness

Shock can happen suddenly or gradually. Acute shock occurs suddenly, usually within minutes or hours of an injury or illness. Chronic shock occurs over days or weeks of unrelieved pain and stress.

Types of First Aid Shocks

There are different types of shocks depending on the underlying cause. Let’s discuss the 5 types, their symptons and how to remedy them:

  1. Hypovolemic Shock

This type of shock is caused by the sudden loss of blood or other body fluids. It may also occur after excessive vomiting, diarrhea or burns (especially if you have been exposed to heat for a long time).

The symptoms include:

  • pale skin,
  • rapid heart rate,
  • weak pulse and
  • dizzines
  • difficulty breathing.

If not treated immediately, the victim may die within minutes.

Treating hypovelmic shock

In this case, you need to treat the wound by putting pressure on it until help arrives. You can also apply a tourniquet if it is safe to do so. If the wound has occurred on an extremity (limb), use a dressing to cover it completely and then wrap an elastic bandage around it tightly until help arrives.

For internal bleeding (bleeding inside the body), try to keep the victim calm and make sure that he does not move about too much because this would only worsen his condition.

You should also avoid giving him anything to eat or drink as this could make things worse for him as well as complicate his condition even further too!

  1. Cardiogenic shock

Cardiogenic shock occurs when there isn’t enough blood flowing through the heart’s chambers because of damage to the heart muscle or valve problems.

It may be caused by chronic heart failure or other conditions that make it hard for the heart to pump blood effectively through the body’s circulatory system.

Cardiogenic shock can arise from a heart attack (myocardial infarction), but also from other causes such as pericarditis, pulmonary embolism or some types of heart disease.

Symptoms include:

  •  chest pain (which may spread out to your arms)
  •  shortness of breath – often with blue lips.

Treatment: Follow first aid advice for cardiogenic shock until help arrives (call an ambulance immediately). If possible, place your patient in the recovery position so that any vomit or liquid secretions do not enter their wind pipe.

  1. Anaphylactic shock 

Anaphylaxis is an acute allergic reaction that occurs within seconds to minutes after exposure to an allergen. This type of shock is starts after an allergic reaction triggered by some substance in the body. In severe cases, it can lead to unconsciousness or death if not treated right away.

This causes release of chemicals such as histamine that cause symptoms such as:

  •  swelling of the airways, leading to difficulty in breathing
  •  swelling of the face or throat region.
  • dizziness, nausea and vomiting,
  • abdominal cramps and diarrhea.
  • The person may also experience itching, hives and tightness in the chest region.
  • You may also have difficulty swallowing and have hives or a rash all over your body

In this case too, CPR is given along with antihistamine drugs such as epinephrine or diphenhydramine (Benadryl).

Anaphylactic first aid shocks are an medical emergency, which can lead to death. The emergency medical services should be called immediately.

  1. Septic shock

Septic shock can be caused by an infection or severe inflammation in your body, such as bacteremia (bacteria in the bloodstream), or sepsis (a whole-body inflammatory response to an infection).

It’s different than other kinds of blood poisoning because it involves a lot of different organs and tissues in your body. Septic shock can also happen when bacteria enter your bloodstream through a wound or break in your skin.

In essence, it is the body’s response to a serious bacterial infection. This condition can occur in any part of the body.

Symptoms include:

  • In septic shock the blood pressure drops sharply
  • The heart rate increases dramatically.
  • Septic shock may also cause pain or fever.
  • High fever (over 101°F) with shaking chills
  • Rapid breathing (tachypnea) or shallow breathing (hypoventilation)
  • Low blood pressure (hypotension)
  • Confusion or altered mental status
  • Cool, clammy skin (pallor)

This condition requires immediate treatment in a hospital emergency room with intravenous antibiotics and fluids to increase blood pressure and prevent organ damage from low blood flow due to low blood pressure (shock).

  1. Neurogenic shock

Neurogenic shock occurs when there is loss of nerve function that may be caused by trauma such as spinal cord injury or stroke.

Neurogenic shock causes:

  •  low blood pressure (shock)
  • rapid pulse rate because there is no control over blood vessels dilating and contracting by the brain or spinal cord signals (vasoconstriction).
  • sweating,
  • anxiety,
  • confusion
  • and difficulty breathing due to decreased oxygen delivery to the lungs due to low blood pressure (shock).

Treatment for neurogenic shock involves maintaining fluid balance and treating symptoms such as anxiety using sedatives like Valium (diazepam).

Emergency Response for First Aid Shocks

When someone is unconscious from shock, call 911 or your local emergency number immediately. If you’re unable to reach emergency services, perform CPR first aid until help arrives.

If you suspect that a person has been shocked, take the following steps:

  1. Check for shock symptoms. 

The most common signs of shock are as follows:

  • Pale or bluish skin color.
  • Rapid breathing and heartbeat (palpable pulse).
  • Confusion, disorientation.
  • Nausea and vomiting.

A quick drop in body temperature is another sign a victim may be in shock.

  1. Lay the victim down

If the victim is conscious, have him lie down with his feet elevated higher than his head to help reduce swelling in his body (especially in the legs). . This also minimizes strain on the heart and allows blood pressure to stabilize.

  1. Remove restrictive clothing

Remove any restrictive clothing around the chest or neck area that could restrict breathing or blood flow to the brain.

  1. Cover the victim

Apply blankets over top of the victim’s body — don’t remove them unless they’re wet with sweat or blood; keep them warm but not hot enough to cause sweating or discomfort.

  1. Check for vomitting

Do not give him anything by mouth unless he is vomiting and cannot stop himself — he could choke on his own vomit. Do not try to make an unconscious person vomit; this would cause more fluid loss from the body and could make things worse!

  1. Dial 911

If possible, have someone call 911 or your local emergency number right away (make sure they know what kind of emergency it is).

  1. Administer chest compressions 

Lastly, if you have CPR training, begin chest compressions as you wait for EMS asistants to arrive.

Final Words on First Aid Shocks

Shocks can be tricky conditions to diagnose, so it’s best to dial 911 immediately if you believe a victim is suffering from one. But remember, a victim may display some subtle signs before their condition worsens. As discussed above, seizures are one of the more common symptoms of shock, but other ones include rapid heartbeat and shallow breathing.