Shivering : Causes, Types, Treatment and Symptoms

Shivering is the body’s muscle contraction, controlled by the hypothalamus, that generates heat to raise the core temperature. While it is a usual response to cold, it can also be a triggering factor raised by fear, fever, and infection.

Most common shivering symptoms:

• Cold sensation
• Muscle tremors/shaking
• Cold waves running through the body
• Goosebumps, goose pimples, or gooseflesh, are a small rash-like sensation on the skin
• Its extent and intensity lead to tiredness and exhaustion
• Elevated heart rate to generate heat
• Trembling of the jaw muscle causes chattering teeth
• Reduced blood flow to the skin, causing paleness

Causes of Shivering

• Exposure to cold environments
• Infections such as flu, malaria, or even more severe conditions like sepsis.
• Emotional responses cause a sudden surge of adrenaline
• Sudden drop in blood sugar levels
• Dehydration
• Neurological issues, such as Parkinson’s disease or essential tremors
• Certain medications have neurological side effects
• Withdrawal from caffeine or alcohol
• An underactive thyroid reduces heat production

When to Seek a Specialist for Your Shivering?

While it’s considered a natural phenomenon of the body’s reaction against cold, it can sometimes indicate a deeper, serious underlying medical condition. You may consider a neurologist when shivering turns to tremors or someway linked to the nervous system, and get immediate help if shivering is accompanied by the symptoms mentioned below.

• Shivering that lasts for more than a few hours or days.
• High fevers, especially in children.
• Concerning physical symptoms, such as chest pain, dizziness, skin rash, difficulty in breathing, and neck stiffness.
• New or worsening symptoms such as confusion or disorientation, negative thoughts, depression, or difficulty managing anxiety.
• Part of the signs of infection, like flu, dengue, or urinary tract infections (UTIs).
• In the suspected underlying medical condition, where symptoms overlap with other symptoms.
• If shivering starts as a side effect of new medications.
• Emotional distress and interrupting daily activities.
• Unexplained numbness that occurs frequently.

Don’t wait for signs to grow severe. Consult our General Physicians today

Diagnostic Approach for Body Shivering

A diagnostic approach for body shivering involves taking a complete medical history, followed by a physical examination and recording vital signs. It may sometimes involve certain medications, blood and urine tests to identify and rule out infections.

• Reviewing symptoms and gathering the patient’s past and family history
• Performed physical examination to note physical clues such as infections, liver dysfunction, eye movement abnormalities, and rigidity.
• Complete blood count (CBC) for any signs of infection
• Blood culture test for bacterial and fungal infections in the blood
• Thyroid function test to hash out thyroid issues
• Electrolyte test to assess sodium, calcium, and potassium levels
• A glucose test to rule out hypoglycemia
• Sputum culture to test for respiratory infection
• Urine tests, like urinalysis or urine culture, are performed to analyze and determine urinary tract infections (UTIs).
• Conduct specialized tests, such as the tilt table test or electromyography, to identify the shifts in the heart rate, blood pressure and any nerve damage, respectively.

Types of Shivering

Shivering is characterised by a combination of muscle contraction and relaxation, often associated with fear, fever, and various forms of discomfort. Tremors are nothing but type of shivering that occurs independently of thermal sensations such as heat or cold.

Some common types of shivering include:

• Involuntary response to cold, where the body regulates temperature.
• When fever triggers shivering due to a sudden rise in body temperature.
• Where the body shivering is caused by severe anxiety or intense stress.
• General discomfort
• Rest tremor: when the body is at rest and stops during voluntary movement, as seen in Parkinson’s disease.
• Action tremor: indicated hand shivering as seen during involuntary muscle movements like postural, kinetic, intentional, and task-related tremors.
• Physiologic tremor: a subtle tremor seen in everyone, and can be exacerbated by caffeine, anger or anxiety.

How to treat the Shivering symptoms?

Shivering treatments focus on managing symptoms associated with cold, fever, and other underlying causes. If shivering is accompanied by other serious symptoms, it is advisable to seek medical advice to diagnose and address the underlying condition, which may include infections and thyroid disorders.

For underlying causes, treatments & management strategies include:

• Warm up the body by drinking warm beverages and wearing multiple layers of clothing.
• Use over-the-counter medications like fever reducers (ibuprofen) to lower body temperature.
• Get plenty of rest to restore the body’s metabolism and function.
• Consume fruit juices or a snack to quickly raise blood sugar levels in the case of hypoglycemia.
• Manage anxiety and reduce stress-induced shivering with deep breathing and relaxation.
• Take a warm shower to relax tensed muscles and improve circulation.

What if Shivering is Left Untreated?

If shivering is left untreated, it could lead to potential consequences like a severe drop in body temperature, unconsciousness, or even death. If shivering persists along with other symptoms, it may indicate a sign of a life-threatening emergency, and people are advised to seek immediate help.

• Hypothermia: a quick loss of body heat than it can produce, which can often lead to loss of consciousness, identified by poor coordination, dizziness, shivering, slurred speech, and confusion.
• Shivering occurs in response to serious infections, such as food poisoning, pneumonia, and urinary tract infections. These untreated infections can lead to organ damage or shock.
• Low blood sugar or hypoglycemia.
• Severe dehydration causes serious health issues.
• Malnutrition: consuming insufficient nutrients or certain vitamin deficiencies can cause persistent chills and shivering.

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