[Thermal regulation disturbance in severely handicapped patients--the second report]

Thirty-three severely handicapped patients were investigated on body temperature regulation by rectal temperature monitoring and hypophyseal hormonal function. The lowest body temperature in the day in the cases with handicaps of prenatal onset tended to be lower than that of peri or postnatal onset. This finding suggests that different causes make regulation disturbance of body temperature in handicapped children. On the other hand, low urine osmolarity in the morning and irregular menstruation were recorded suggesting hypothalamic dysfunction in poor regulation cases.