TEMPERATURE MONITORING AND PERIOPERATIVEHEAT LOSS

Objectives: to assess the temperature fall at various stages in the perioperative period and identification of contributing factors. material & methods: this observational study was carried out at blackpool victoria hospital, uk from august 2005 – january 2006 on 32 patients undergoing major lower limb vascular surgery. semi-structured data collection form was designed to record the time and tympanic temperature at different stages in perioperative period and the warming methods used. results: a median fall of 0.1 c (0 -0.5 c) in core temperature was recorded in ward and theatre reception o oarea. the median fall of temperature in the anaesthetic room was 0.3 c (0-.8 c). patients (n=16) spending omore than ½ hour in the anaesthetic room had a significant (p=0.002) temperature drop recorded at 0.4 c oas compared to 0.2 c for those spending less than 30 minutes. during operation, a median fall of o o 1temperature by 0.8 c (0.3 – 2.1 c) was recorded. operations lasting for 2 / ½hours or more (n=16) resulted 2 in a 1 c temperature fall as against 0.5 c for the rest. seven patients, in whom a warming mat was used, had a temperature drop of 0.6 c compared to 0.35 c in patients who received warm touch. in the recovery unit, 23 patients had a further drop of 0.3 c, while 9 patients who were actively warmed gained 0.6 c. conclusions: significant heat loss occurs in the anaesthetic room relevant to the length of time consumed in anaesthetising the patient. furthermore active warming measures in the perioperative period have a positive impact on maintaining core temperature.