Agreement between temporal artery, oral, and axillary temperature measurements in the perioperative period

This study examined agreement in temperature readings preoperatively and postoperatively between temporal artery and electronic oral/axillary thermometers as well as the seconds required to obtain temperature readings across the three measuring modes. Using a repeated measures design, 86 adult subjects had temporal artery, oral, and axillary temperatures taken upon admission to the surgical area and upon admission to the PACU. Findings indicated best agreement both preoperatively and postoperatively between the oral mode of the electronic thermometer and the temporal artery thermometer, followed by agreement between oral and axillary modes of the electronic thermometer, and the least agreement between the temporal artery and axillary readings. Seconds to temperature measurement was significantly different both preoperatively and postoperatively, with temporal artery measurement the fastest, followed by oral and then axillary. Results support the use of the temporal artery thermometers as an alternative for perioperative noninvasive temperature monitoring.