Bruce H. Knox
Independent Scholar, New Zealand
Publications
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Review Article
Thermoregulatory Failure and Gradual Recovery in Multifactorial Secondary Autonomic Dysfunction: A First-Person Longitudinal Narrative with Clinical Correlation
Author(s): Bruce H. Knox*
Thermoregulation is one of the most fundamental homeostatic functions of the autonomic nervous system, allowing the body to maintain internal temperature through coordinated sweating, vasomotor adjustment, heat conservation, and behavioural adaptation. When this system fails, the consequences are often severe yet under-described, particularly in patients living with secondary autonomic dysfunction after complex multisystem illness. This paper presents a first-person longitudinal account of thermoregulatory dysregulation following cumulative autonomic injury, interpreted through current medical understanding of sudomotor failure, small-fiber autonomic neuropathy, hypothalamic dysregulation, and impaired autonomic reserve. The lived experience included complete absence of sweating, profound heat intolerance, inability to cool appropriately, paradoxical sweating in inappropriate contexts.. Read More»