Evaluation of the cold strain index (CSI) for peripheral cold environmental stress

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cold strain index (CSI) for peripheral environmental stress using data from a previous footwear study. Eight men (20±2 yr) dressed in protective cold weather clothing with varying footwear underwent 5 days of cold air (?23.4 °C) testing while attempting to sit for 240 min. Rectal, skin, and toe temperatures (T_toe) were continuously measured. All test exposures were ended after 50–165 min due to cold foot discomfort or T_toe<5 °C. However, CSI values indicated little cold strain. Therefore, we revised CSI to include peripheral cold assessment, which was found to be consistent with subject behavior and measured low T_toe.