Is the temporal artery thermometer a reliable instrument for detecting fever in children?
Summary of "Is the temporal artery thermometer a reliable instrument for detecting fever in children?"
Aims and objective.  We aimed to study the diagnostic accuracy of the temporal artery thermometer vs. rectal temperature in a large group of children with and without fever, aged 0-18 years. Background.  Many have studied the diagnostic accuracy of the temporal artery thermometer in children compared with a reference method, with contradictory outcomes. No studies have been carried out in a large group of children of all ages. Design.  Diagnostic accuracy/validation study. Method.  Children (0-18 years) with fever (T > 38·0 °C) were recruited through the emergency department and children with normal temperatures through the day-care department of the Children's Hospital. All children routinely had rectal temperature recordings. Temporal artery temperature was recorded shortly after the rectal recording. The mean absolute difference in temperature, the level of agreement (intraclass correlation coefficient) and the sensitivity and specificity of detecting fever were calculated. Results.  A total number of 198 children (121 boys) participated, with a mean age of 5·1 (SD 4·7) years. Of those children, 81 had fever according to the rectal recording. Mean difference between temporal artery temperature and rectal temperature was -0·11 (SD 0·63) °C, with an agreement of 0·812. The sensitivity and specificity of the temporal artery thermometer for detecting fever were 67·9 and 98·3%, respectively. Conclusions.  The diagnostic accuracy of the temporal artery thermometer in detecting fever in children of all ages is low. Relevance to clinical practice. We do not recommend replacement of standard clinical thermometers with temporal artery thermometers.
Affiliation
Authors: Corine Penning, MSc, PhD, Associate Professor, Intellectual Disability Medicine, Department of General Practice, Erasmus University Medical Center and Department of Pediatric Surgery/Intensive Care, Erasmus University Medical Center - Sophia; Jan
Journal Details
This article was published in the following journal.
Name: Journal of clinical nursing
ISSN: 1365-2702
Pages:
Links
- PubMed Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21418361
- DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2010.03568.x
Medical and Biotech [MESH] Definitions
Posterior Cerebral Artery
Artery formed by the bifurcation of the BASILAR ARTERY. Branches of the posterior cerebral artery supply portions of the OCCIPITAL LOBE; PARIETAL LOBE; inferior temporal gyrus, brainstem, and CHOROID PLEXUS.
Temporal Arteries
Arteries arising from the external carotid or the maxillary artery and distributing to the temporal region.
Anterior Temporal Lobectomy
A neurosurgical procedure that removes the anterior TEMPORAL LOBE including the medial temporal structures of CEREBRAL CORTEX; AMYGDALA; HIPPOCAMPUS; and the adjacent PARAHIPPOCAMPAL GYRUS. This procedure is generally used for the treatment of intractable temporal epilepsy (EPILEPSY, TEMPORAL LOBE).
Giant Cell Arteritis
A systemic autoimmune disorder that typically affects medium and large ARTERIES, usually leading to occlusive granulomatous vasculitis with transmural infiltrate containing multinucleated GIANT CELLS. The TEMPORAL ARTERY is commonly involved. This disorder appears primarily in people over the age of 50. Symptoms include FEVER; FATIGUE; HEADACHE; visual impairment; pain in the jaw and tongue; and aggravation of pain by cold temperatures. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed)
Internal Mammary-coronary Artery Anastomosis
Direct myocardial revascularization in which the internal mammary artery is anastomosed to the right coronary artery, circumflex artery, or anterior descending coronary artery. The internal mammary artery is the most frequent choice, especially for a single graft, for coronary artery bypass surgery.
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