Can fever-reducing medication be taken for high fever caused by heatstroke?

High fever usually refers to hyperthermia. Antipyretics are generally not recommended for heat stroke-induced hyperthermia, as they typically do not significantly improve high body temperature caused by heat stroke.

Antipyretic medications work by inhibiting the synthesis of prostaglandins in the body, thereby exerting fever-reducing and pain-relieving effects. They also possess anti-inflammatory and anti-rheumatic properties, making them effective against fevers caused by pathogenic infections. However, heat stroke is primarily caused by factors such as excessively high environmental temperatures, excessive internal heat production, or impaired heat dissipation, leading to dysfunction of the body's thermoregulatory center or failure of sweat gland function, resulting in excessive loss of water and electrolytes. Since there is no inflammatory infection involved, antipyretics are generally ineffective in reducing body temperature in cases of heat stroke-induced hyperthermia.

When heat stroke with hyperthermia occurs, it is usually necessary to first move the individual away from the high-temperature environment, then lower body temperature using methods such as blowing air with an electric fan or wiping the skin with wet towels. In some cases, gastric or rectal lavage with ice-cold saline may be required to achieve rapid cooling.