AORN journal
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Unplanned hypothermia is commonly encountered in the perioperative period. Nursing has contributed to the literature on hypothermia with studies on shivering and treatment modalities; however, the direct physiological consequences of postoperative hypothermia have been reported mainly in the medical literature. ⋯ The Roy Adaptation Model is explained as a framework for nursing care of patients with hypothermia. Clinical practice guidelines for unplanned perioperative hypothermia also are provided.
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Many perioperative clinicians encounter difficulty in preventing hypothermia in surgical patients. One intervention to prevent perioperative hypothermia is the use of forced-air warming. Although forced-air warming is used most frequently in the intraoperative area, prewarming patients with forced-air warming systems before induction of anesthesia may be enough to prevent hypothermia throughout the surgical procedure, allowing patients to arrive in the postanesthesia care unit in a normothermic state. A review of the literature on preoperative forced-air warming is provided, and the effect of prewarming on postoperative patient temperatures is discussed.
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Although wrong site surgeries are rare, these incidents have received a great deal of media attention in recent years, prompting health care organizations and associations to search for ways to eliminate this problem. This article examines the quest for ways to prevent wrong site surgeries and considers the contributions of organizations such as the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, and AORN toward eliminating wrong site surgeries.
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Approximately 500,000 surgical site infections (SSIs) occur each year in the United States. The purpose of this study was to determine if the bacteria most frequently involved in SSIs could be found on telephones in the OR. ⋯ Using standard laboratory procedures, the researchers identified coagulase-negative staphylococci in the cultures. The study found that telephones in the OR can serve as reservoirs for SSI-causing bacteria.
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Review
Presentation of illness in older adults. If you think you know what you're looking for, think again.
ALTHOUGH PEOPLE AGE at different rates, changes to the composition of the human body are a hallmark of aging. As a result of such changes, disease can present differently in a person over 65 years old than it would in a younger adult or child. THIS ARTICLE IDENTIFIES the critical indicators of underlying conditions, including changes in mental status, loss of function, decrease in appetite, dehydration, falls, pain, dizziness, and incontinence. It also describes the presentation of diseases common to older adults, including depression, infection, cardiac disease, gastrointestinal disorders, thyroid disease, and type 2 diabetes.