Minerva Pediatrica 2020 May 15

DOI: 10.23736/S0026-4946.20.05755-2

Copyright © 2020 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Assessment of preferable site for temperature measurement using non contact infra-red temperature among pediatric patients

Saiprasad O. KAVTHEKAR ¹, Ashok A. CHOUGULE ¹ ✉, Swati S. KAVTHEKAR ², Anil B. KURANE ¹, Sachin VERMA ¹

¹ Department of Pediatrics, Dr D. Y. Patil Hospital and Research Centre and D. Y. Patil Medical College, D.Y. Patil Education Society (Deemed-to-be-University), Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India; ² Department of Pathology, Dr D. Y. Patil Hospital and Research Centre and D. Y. Patil Medical College, D.Y. Patil Education society (Deemed-to-be-University), Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India

BACKGROUND: Accurate temperature measurement with little or no discomfort that is safe, without risk of hospital-acquired infections or perforations, is the preferred choice of medical professionals in pediatric settings. The objective was to discover the preferable site for body temperature measurement using non-contact infra-red thermometer (NCIT) among pediatric patients.
METHODS: NCIT measurement at mid forehead (F), right temporal region (T), right side of neck- over-carotid artery area (N), jugular notch (J), sternum (S), umbilical region and sublingual region (U) were compared with digital axillary temperature (DAT) in a single attempt in 500 patients, aged between 2 to 5 years with fever. Data was analyzed using Pearson’s correlation, paired T-test and Bland-Altman plot to assess the correlation and agreement between the DAT and NCIT sites.
RESULTS: The mean temperature of NCIT-T (38.42 ± 0.64 °C) was more agreeable with DAT (38.42 ± 0.63 °C) compared to other body sites. The minimum mean bias of -0.00480 °C was noted for NCIT-F with 95% CI of -0.164-0.15; however, NCIT-F revealed many outliers as compared to NCIT-J. A strong positive correlation existed between DAT and NCIT sites (r value: 0.99-0.98). However, significant difference was found between DAT and NCIT-N, NCIT-F and NCIT-U (p value < 0.0001).
CONCLUSIONS: NCIT-J is the most preferable choice for measuring body temperature and can be interchanged with DAT. It will help to deliver fast results with enhanced patient comfort due to its non-invasive nature.

KEY WORDS: Body temperature; Children; Digital axillary temperature; Jugular notch; Non-contact Infra-red thermometer