Heat cramps were described as early as 1878 in men working in extreme heat in gold mines in Nevada (1). The term is still used today to describe the severe, spreading, sustained, sharply painful muscle contractions that can sideline athletes. It seems to describe the extreme end of the spectrum of exercise-associated muscle cramps (EAMC), in that cramping solely from fatigue tends to be milder, briefer, and more localized (2). Common in summer football (and seen even in "winter football," such as the New York Giants players cramping in their Super Bowl win in February 2008), heat cramps also can strike in tennis and in distance cycling and running, especially in tropical triathlons. They also can occur in soccer and in beach volleyball, in point guards in basketball tournaments, and in pitchers in hot, humid baseball games. Paradoxically, heat cramps can even occur at the end of cross-country ski races and in ice hockey goalies late in long games. This suggests that even if the "macroclimate" is cold, the "microclimate," of the hockey goalie, for example, can become too hot for too long. Pearl: Heat cramps could better be termed "sweat cramps," in that salt (sodium chloride) loss via heavy sweating is a key culprit.
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