Perioperative hypothermia during colectomy: when do patients get cold?

Intraoperative thermal insulation in off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting surgery: a prospective, double blind, randomized controlled, single-center study

Background

About 50% patients who underwent off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCAB) experienced perioperative hypothermia. Pre-warming and intraoperative infusion of amino acid injection are the most popular perioperative insulation measures in recent years, but neither of them can completely prevent intraoperative hypothermia. The objective is to investigate the effect of preoperative warming and/or intraoperative infusion of amino acid injection on body temperature in patients undergoing OPCAB.

Methods

A prospective, double blind, randomized controlled, single-center study. Seventy-two patients were randomly divided into 4 groups: control group, pre-warming group, amino-acid group and multi-mode group. Pre-warming and multi-mode group were pre-heated with warming blankets and forced-air warming system before induction. After that, amino-acid and multi-mode group were infused with 18-amino acid solution. The perioperative temperature and complications were monitored.

Results

The temperature of control and amino-acid group decreased significantly, but amino-acid group recovered to preoperative level faster. The temperature of pre-warming group was stable, and that in multi-mode group increased at 60 min after the start of surgery. There was a significant difference in temperature at each time, and no difference in the incidence of complications between the groups.

Conclusions

Preoperative warming and/or intraoperative infusion of amino acid injection can effectively reduce hypothermia in OPCAB surgery. Pre-warming before anesthesia is more effective, and the combination of the two methods has the best effect.

Preoperative peripheral and core temperature: an observational study at a day-surgery unit

BACKGROUND

Hypothermia is a common problem in the surgical context and can lead to serious consequences for the patient and increased costs for society.

AIMS

To study day-surgery patients' peripheral and core temperatures during the preoperative phase.

METHODS

In total, 50 day-surgery patients participated in the study. Two sets of measurements of temperatures were made: core temperature and peripheral temperatures (two measuring points on the upper body and lower extremities respectively) were measured on arrival at the day-surgery unit, as well as on arrival at the operating theatre. The data were normally distributed and a paired t-test was used for statistical analysis.

FINDINGS

Peripheral temperatures had significant changes, with measuring points on the upper body decreasing and measuring points on the lower extremities increasing in temperature. The results show no significant change in core temperature.

CONCLUSION

The measurements show that 28% of the patients were below recommended preoperative temperature on arrival at the operating theatre. Further research is needed to study the development of body temperature perioperatively as well as at what point reheating interventions should be introduced.