Myth: You can send someone into shock if you cool them off too fast. This is false. Having ice dumped on you is not comfortable in normal conditions but most people barely feel it if they are dangerously overheated.
The Paramedics I take my MRT class from always advise against this.
That's what was taught in the past, and is still sometimes taught today in EMS education. But it is wrong.
The gold standard for treating hyperthermia is full immersion in an icewater bath. This is what the top athletic trainers do, both at the world class and local high school levels.
The only valid exceptions are people who are very aged or who have seriously pathological cardiac dysrhythmia problems. In just about everyone else, rapid cooling via water at or just above freezing is the gold standard.
Since someone developing heat stroke will almost certainly have altered mental status, care must be taken to keep their airway clear during the water immersion.
Look to some of the more recent research for the details. Don't rely on stuff written 5-10 years ago.
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