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[Tympanic thermometer. The left or the right ear?].
Juan A de la Rubia de la Rubia1, Armando Aguirre-Jaime, Ana M Fernández Vilar
1E.U.E. Nuestra Señora de Candelaria, Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
Revista De Enfermeria (Barcelona, Spain)
|September 25, 2003
Summary
Infrared ear thermometers show significant temperature disparities. For accurate body temperature readings, use the right ear or record the highest temperature from both ears.
Area of Science:
- Medical Devices
- Clinical Thermometry
Background:
- Mercury thermometers are being replaced by infrared ear thermometers for body temperature measurement.
- Tympanic temperature readings offer a convenient alternative for assessing core body temperature.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the agreement between tympanic temperature measurements taken with different infrared thermometers.
- To assess the concordance of readings between the left and right ears using infrared thermometers.
Main Methods:
- 147 patients (ages 5-88) had their tympanic temperatures measured using two Firstemp Genius model 3000A thermometers in each ear.
- Concordance was analyzed using the Bland and Altman method for same-ear, different-thermometer comparisons.
- Inter-ear temperature differences were assessed using Cohen's kappa and percentage disparity, with 38°C as a reference.
Main Results:
- An 8% disparity was observed between readings from two thermometers in the same ear (left and right).
- When comparing left and right ear readings, the Cohen kappa index was 0.70, with an 11% disparity.
- Disparities in same-ear and between-ear measurements exceeded chance levels.
Conclusions:
- Significant temperature variations exist between different infrared thermometers and between ears.
- The study recommends measuring tympanic temperature in the right ear or recording the highest value from both ears for improved accuracy.