Risk factors for intraoperative hypothermia in infants during general anesthesia: A retrospective study

This study aimed to determine the incidence and evaluate the risk factors and outcomes of intraoperative hypothermia (IH) during general anesthesia in infants. Retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data. A total of 754 infants younger than 1 year old who underwent surgery under general anesthesia were included. Intraoperative body temperature fluctuations, surgical and anesthetic data, postoperative complications, and infant outcomes were recorded. Logistic regression algorithms were used to evaluate potential risk factors. Among the 754 infants, 47.88% developed IH (<36 °C) and 15.4% of them experienced severe hypothermia (<35 °C). The average lowest temperature in hypothermia patients was 35.06 ± 0.69°C with a duration of 82.23 ± 50.59 minutes. Neonates tended to experience hypothermia (37.7% vs 7.6%, P < .001) and prematurity was more common in patients with IH (29.4% vs 16.8%, P < .001). Infants with hypothermia experienced a longer length of stay in the post anesthesia care units and intensive care units, postoperative hospitalizations, and tracheal extubation as well as a higher rate of postoperative hemorrhage than those with normothermia (all P < .05). Several factors were proved to be associated with an increased risk of IH after multivariate analysis: neonate (odds ratio [OR] = 3.685, 95% CI 1.839-7.382), weight (OR = 0.599, 95% CI 0.525-0.683), American society of anesthesiologists (OR = 3.418, 95% CI 2.259-5.170), fluid > 20 mL/kg (OR = 2.380, 95% CI 1.389-4.076), surgery time >60 minutes (OR = 1.785, 95% CI 1.030-3.093), and pre-warming (OR = 0.027, 95% CI 0.014-0.052). This retrospective study found that neonates, lower weight, longer surgery times, more fluid received, higher American society of anesthesiologists stage, and no pre-warming were all significant risk factors for IH during general anesthesia in infants.