In a Heat Wave, Schizophrenia Is So Much Deadlier Than Any Other Medical Condition
The Most Dangerous
Diagnosis in a Heat Wave
People with schizophrenia face a perfect storm of dangers on a hotter planet.
By Hilary Beaumont
Hilary Beaumont is an investigative journalist covering climate change.
One night an ambulance rushed a middle-aged man into the ER. He had been found unconscious on the sidewalk, baking in the evening sun. Delirious and suffering from heat stroke, he didn’t know what city he was in or what year it was. He was so dehydrated that his kidneys began to shut down, but he kept yanking his arm away when Yoo’s team tried to insert an IV. So they strapped him down by his wrists and ankles, covered him in ice packs, and eventually inserted a catheter to deliver cool fluids directly to his bladder, stabilizing him and saving his life.
One other thing stuck with Yoo about the man. He was exhibiting the same...
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