• M Tudor.
• Br J Theatre Nurs. 1994 Feb 1; 3 (11): 20-3.

AbstractMany investigators have looked at the loss of body heat by the patient during the perioperative period. However the problem still remains of identifying those at risk using a scientific approach. This small study has looked at nine factors identified from a literature search, tested each against a group of 27 patients and then created and tested a check list and rating scale of risk for use by theatre nurses at preoperative assessment during a ward visit. The factors identified from the literature were: patient age, build and debility; the length, grade and site of the surgery; the type of anaesthetic used; whether cold fluids would be infused or used as irrigation of the wound; and the ambient temperature during surgery. Each of these factors were tested against temperature loss and the results indicate that each factor alone does not influence patient temperature loss [P = > 0.05] but that a combination of factors in degrees of severity do. Moreover, the patient's preoperative haemoglobin level also appears to influence the degree of heat loss [P = < 0.05]. The study also looked at the level of success achieved by the theatre nurses in identifying the levels of each factor and this showed that the nurses could identify each level with a 77% success rate overall. After constructing a scale it was tested against the data and this showed that the Rating Scale could identify those at risk [P = < 0.005].(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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