Effects of a Warming Blanket and Warmed Intravenous Crystalloid on Patient Temperature during Surgery Not Involving a Body Cavity

摘要

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of the warming blanket, warmed intravenous crystalloid, and a combination of both heating modalities in the maintenance of normothermic in the anesthetized adult undergoing surgery not involving a body cavity. Twenty-eight patients were included in ths quasi-experimental study. They were adults between the ages of 18 and 75. all were normothermic prior to surgery. The patients required general oral endotracheal tube inhalation or narcotic anesthesia for a minimum of two hours. The results indicated that subjects not exposed to any externally applied heating modality did experience a statistically significant decrease in esophageal temperature with increasing time. Those subjects managed with either warmed crystalloid or a warming blanket did not demonstrate a statistically significant increase or decrease in esophageal temperature with time. The esophageal temperatures in these groups remained essentially unchanged with increasing time. The subjects managed with a combination of warmed intravenous crystalloid and the warming blanket showed a statistically significant increase in esophageal temperature with increasing time.