Drowning and near-drowning incidents are leading causes of mortality and morbidity in both children and adults .
Over the past 30 years, there has been considerable interest in cold-water
immersion incidents, particularly the reasons for the survival of some victims under seemingly fatal conditions. Research suggests that both hypothermia and a “mammalian diving reflex” (MDR)
may account for survival in many near-drowning episodes . However, the extent to which these two processes interact is not