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[Infrared tympanic thermometry compared to mercury thermometers]
P C Valle1, O Kildahl-Andersen, K Steinvoll
1Medisinsk avdeling Harstad sykehus.
Summary
Infrared tympanic thermometry showed unacceptable body temperature differences compared to rectal mercury thermometers, with low fever detection sensitivity. Digital rectal thermometry offers a reliable alternative to mercury thermometers.
Area of Science:
- Medical Devices
- Clinical Thermometry
- Patient Monitoring
Background:
- Conflicting reports exist on the accuracy of infrared tympanic thermometry.
- Rectal thermometry is considered a gold standard for core body temperature measurement.
- Assessing accurate temperature measurement is crucial in medical wards.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the accuracy of infrared tympanic thermometry against mercury and digital rectal thermometers.
- To determine the correlation between infrared tympanic and rectal mercury thermometry.
- To assess the clinical utility of digital rectal thermometry.
Main Methods:
- Prospective study involving 191 adult inpatients.
- Parallel measurements using infrared tympanic thermometer, mercury rectal thermometer, and digital rectal thermometer.
- Comparative analysis of temperature readings from different methods.
Main Results:
- Median difference between infrared tympanic and mercury rectal thermometry was -0.5°C, increasing to -1.4°C for temperatures ≥38°C.
- Infrared tympanic thermometry demonstrated low sensitivity for fever detection in a clinical setting.
- Digital rectal thermometry showed strict accordance with the mercury rectal thermometer method.
Conclusions:
- Infrared tympanic thermometry is not a reliable method for accurate body temperature measurement in medical wards.
- Significant discrepancies exist between infrared tympanic and rectal mercury thermometry, especially during fever.
- Digital rectal thermometry is a viable and accurate alternative to mercury rectal thermometers.