scholarly journals 1342 Screening Patients’ Temperature in COVID-era Outpatient Clinics: An Overreliance on Unreliable Devices?

2021 ◽  
Vol 108 (Supplement_6) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Allman ◽  
M McKenna ◽  
D Leopard ◽  
S Backhouse

Abstract Aim The Covid-19 pandemic continues to impair patient access to hospital clinics. One way of enabling outpatient services to continue safely is to screen for pyrexia by checking patients’ temperature prior to their clinic appointment. Infrared tympanic thermometers (ITT) are commonly used as a surrogate marker of core temperature. Non-contact infrared cutaneous thermometers (NICT) are increasingly favoured as they require no direct contact with patients. The aim was to measure the concordance of temperature readings between ITT and NICT on patients attending ENT outpatient clinic at one hospital. Method Body temperature was recorded using ITT and NICT on 63 sequential patients. Agreement was tested using a Bland-Altman plot with 95% confidence interval and paired T-tests. Results Mean body temperature was significantly lower (p < 0.05) for the NICT [36.3 °C (95% CI 36.2 °C-36.4 °C)] compared with the ITT [36.6 °C (95% CI 36.5 °C-36.7 °C)]. The NICT measured on average 0.34 °C (95% CI 0.33 °C-0.35 °C) lower than the ITT. The Bland-Altman plot showed moderate agreement of the two methods (SD 0.46 °C; limits -1.25 °c to 0.57 °c); however, disagreement was greater at higher and lower temperature extremes. Conclusions Screening patients for pyrexia aims to help prevent spread of COVID-19. False negatives result in a missed opportunity to break the chain of transmission. A significant proportion of false negatives may reverse any intended benefit. NICT are convenient but may be more susceptible to false negatives when assessing for pyrexia and may provide little more than false reassurance when used for pyrexia screening.

2021 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Makeda Sinaga ◽  
Melese Sinaga Teshome ◽  
Tilhun Yemane ◽  
Elsah Tegene ◽  
David Lindtsrom ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Application of advanced body composition measurement methods is not practical in developing countries context due to cost and unavailability of facilities. This study generated ethnic specific body fat percent prediction equation for Ethiopian adults using appropriate data. Methods A cross-sectional study was carried ifrom February to April 2015 among 704 randomly selected adult employees of Jimma University. Ethnic specific Ethiopian body fat percent (BF%) prediction equation was developed using a multivariable linear regression model with measured BF% as dependent variable and age, sex, and body mass index as predictor variables. Agreement between fat percent measured using air displacement plethysmography and body fat percent estimated using Caucasian prediction equations was determined using Bland Altman plot. Results Comparison of ADP measured and predicted BF% showed that Caucasian prediction equation underestimated body fat percent among Ethiopian adults by 6.78% (P < 0.0001). This finding is consistent across all age groups and ethnicities in both sexes. Bland Altman plot did not show agreement between ADP and Caucasian prediction equation (mean difference = 6.7825) and some of the points are outside 95% confidence interval. The caucasian prediction equation significantly underestimates body fat percent in Ethiopian adults, which is consistent across all ethnic groups in the sample. The study developed Ethnic specific BF% prediction equations for Ethiopian adults. Conclusion The Caucasian prediction equation significantly underestimates body fat percent among Ethiopian adults regardless of ethnicity. Ethiopian ethnic-specific prediction equation can be used as a very simple, cheap, and cost-effective alternative for estimating body fat percent among Ethiopian adults for health care provision in the prevention of obesity and related morbidities and for research purposes.


2016 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 180-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilaria Franconi ◽  
Carmen La Cerra ◽  
Anna Rita Marucci ◽  
Cristina Petrucci ◽  
Loreto Lancia

Axillary digital thermometers (ADTs) and non-contact (infrared) forehead thermometers (NCIFTs) are commonly used in pediatric settings, where an incorrect body temperature measurement may delay treatments or lead to incorrect diagnoses and therapies. Several studies comparing ADT or NCIFT with other methods have found conflicting results. To investigate whether ADT and NCIFT can be used interchangeably, a comparative observational study was conducted involving 205 children aged 0 to 14 years who were consecutively admitted to the pediatric emergency department. The Bland–Altman plot illustrated agreement between the two methods. A total of 217 pairs of measurements were compared; axillary measurements showed average values significantly higher than forehead measurements (37.52°C and 37.12°C; t = 7.42, p = .000), with a mean difference of 0.41°C between the two methods (range = −1.80 and +2.40). In this setting and population, ADT and NCIFT cannot be used interchangeably.


Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 1855
Author(s):  
Heejung Kim ◽  
Sunkook Kim ◽  
Mingoo Lee ◽  
Yumie Rhee ◽  
Sungho Lee ◽  
...  

There is a need for continuous, non-invasive monitoring of biological data to assess health and wellbeing. Currently, many types of smart patches have been developed to continuously monitor body temperature, but few trials have been completed to evaluate psychometrics and feasibility for human subjects in real-life scenarios. The aim of this feasibility study was to evaluate the reliability, validity and usability of a smart patch measuring body temperature in healthy adults. The smart patch consisted of a fully integrated wearable wireless sensor with a multichannel temperature sensor, signal processing integrated circuit, wireless communication feature and a flexible battery. Thirty-five healthy adults were recruited for this test, carried out by wearing the patches on their upper chests for 24 h and checking their body temperature six times a day using infrared forehead thermometers as a gold standard for testing validity. Descriptive statistics, one-sampled and independent t-tests, Pearson’s correlation coefficients and Bland-Altman plot were examined for body temperatures between two measures. In addition, multiple linear regression, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and qualitative content analysis were conducted. Among the 35 participants, 29 of them wore the patch for over 19 h (dropout rate: 17.14%). Mean body temperature measured by infrared forehead thermometers and smart patch ranged between 32.53 and 38.2 °C per person and were moderately correlated (r = 0.23–0.43) overall. Based on a Bland-Altman plot, approximately 94% of the measurements were located within one standard deviation (upper limit = 4.52, lower limit = −5.82). Most outliers were identified on the first measurement and were located below the lower limit. It is appropriate to use 37.5 °C in infrared forehead temperature as a cutoff to define febrile conditions. Users’ position while checking and ambient temperature and humidity are not affected to the smart patch body temperature. Overall, the participants showed high usability and satisfaction on the survey. Few participants reported discomfort due to limited daily activity, itchy skin or detaching concerns. In conclusion, epidermal electronic sensor technologies provide a promising method for continuously monitoring individuals’ body temperatures, even in real-life situations. Our study findings show the potential for smart patches to monitoring non-febrile condition in the community.


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 677
Author(s):  
Maaike Kruseman ◽  
Angeline Chatelan ◽  
Eddy Farina ◽  
Isabelle Carrard ◽  
Jeremy Cela ◽  
...  

Several tools assessing diet quality have been developed over the last decades, but their use in public health and clinical practice is limited because they necessitate detailed quantitative assessment of food intake. Our goal was to develop and validate a score (Score d’Alimentation Saine, SCASA) based on a short self-administrated online questionnaire to assess overall diet quality. SCASA targets the adult population in French-speaking Switzerland, but it was designed in a way enabling its adaptation for other regions. The choice of the items involved experts and lay volunteers. Construct validation and inter-method reliability were assessed by screening meal plans and by comparing the self-rated scores with food-record derived scores (kappa and Bland–Altman). SCASA (17 components) discriminated adequately balanced from imbalanced meal plans (93–95% and 44–46% of maximal score). Agreement between self-assessed and food record-based scores ranged between >90% (3 items), 80–89% (3 items), 70–79% (4 items), and <70% (5 items). The Bland–Altman plot showed a mean difference of −1.60 (95% CI −2.36 to −0.84), indicating a slight overestimation of the self-assessed diet quality compared to the food record. SCASA offers a reliable way to assess overall diet quality without requiring burdensome data collection or nutrient calculations.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhiming Xiang ◽  
Zhu Ai ◽  
Jianke Liang ◽  
Guijin Li ◽  
Xiaolei Zhu ◽  
...  

Purpose. To evaluate the performance of an optimized ECG trigger diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) sequence in liver and its application in liver disease. Materials and Methods. Eighteen healthy volunteers underwent intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion weighted imaging (IVIM-DWI) scan of the liver twice in 1.5T MR scanner with signed informed consent approved by local ethic committees. A new method, called cardiac stationary phase based ECG trigger (CaspECG), and FB method were applied. The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and the IVIM parameters, including pure diffusion coefficient (D), perfusion-related diffusion coefficient (D⁎), and perfusion fraction, (PF) were calculated, and then 18 region of interests were drawn on these parameter maps independently by two readers through whole hepatic lobe. The regional variability and reproducibility between two repeated scans were evaluated using interclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and Bland-Altman plot, respectively, and compared between the CaspECG and FB methods. The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of DWI data was also evaluated. Result. Compared to the FB method, the proposed CaspECG method showed significant higher SNRs in DWI data, lower regional variability between left and right hepatic lobes, and higher reproducibility of ADC, PF, D, and D⁎ between repeat scans [left lobe, limit of agreement (LOA) of Bland-Altman plot: 10.1%, 18.3%, 19.8%, and 59.2%; right lobe, LOA: 10.25%, 14.15%, 16.45%, and 39.45%]. D⁎ showed the worst reproducibility in all parameters. Conclusion. The novel CaspECG method outperformed the FB method in compensating the cardiac motion induced artifacts in DWI data and generating more reliable quantitative parameters, with less regional variability and higher repeatability, especially in the left hepatic lobe.


Author(s):  
Marco Binotti ◽  
Francesco Cavallin ◽  
Pier Luigi Ingrassia ◽  
Nicolas J Pejovic ◽  
Alice Monzani ◽  
...  

BackgroundNeoTapAdvancedSupport (NeoTapAS) is a mobile application, based on a screen tapping method that calculates the heart rate (HR). We aimed to evaluate the accuracy of NeoTapAS in reliably determining HR from auscultation in a high-fidelity simulated newborn resuscitation scenario.MethodsPaediatric residents assessed HR by auscultation plus NeoTapAS in an asphyxiated term infant scenario and orally communicated the estimated HR. An external observer simultaneously documented the actual HR set in the manikin and the communicated HR.ResultsOne hundred and sixty HR measurements were recorded. The agreement between communicated and set HR was good (Cohen’s kappa 0.80, 95% CI 0.72 to 0.87; Bangdiwala’s weighted agreement strength statistic 0.93). Bland-Altman plot showed a mean difference between communicated and set HR values of 1 beats per minute (bpm) (95% agreement limits −9 to 11 bpm).ConclusionNeoTapAS showed a good accuracy in estimating HR and it could be an important resource in settings with limited availability of ECG monitor.


Author(s):  
Aparajita Dasgupta ◽  
Foulisa Pyrbot ◽  
Bobby Paul ◽  
Soumit Roy ◽  
Pritam Ghosh ◽  
...  

Introduction: Hypertension is a major risk factor for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Thus, regular and accurate measurement of Blood Pressure (BP) is essential for its early diagnosis and follow-up. There is a surge in popularity of digital sphygmomanometer due to its convenience of use and functionality. In contrast, the traditional universally accepted sphygmomanometer is aneroid type, hence there arise a need for comparison of digital and universally accepted Aneroid Sphygmomanometer in terms of agreement and correlation. Aim: To evaluate the agreement and correlation between blood pressure measurement by digital and aneroid sphygmomanometer. Materials and Methods: The clinic based cross-sectional study was conducted in the Out Patient Department (OPD) of Urban Heath Centre, All India Institute of Hygiene and Public Health, Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Adults visiting the OPD on two chosen days of the week, between June 2019 to July 2019 were selected using systematic random sampling. A total of 400 participants were included. Agreement and correlation between BP measurements by digital and aneroid sphygmomanometer was analysed by Cohen’s Kappa, Bland Altman Plot along with sensitivity, specificity and predictive values using Microsoft Excel and Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16.0. the p-value <0.05 was considered significant for the statistical test in the analysis. Results: Cohen’s Kappa value (0.59) revealed these two tools had moderate agreement in diagnosing hypertension. Sensitivity and specificity of digital sphygmomanometer taking aneroid sphygmomanometer as gold standard is 86% and 83.1% respectively. The BP readings of these two-tools showed moderate correlation as Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) for Systolic BP (SBP) and Diastolic BP (DBP) were 0.804 and 0.624, respectively. Bland Altman plot showed gross disagreement of SBP findings and disagreement between DBP findings was also noted. Conclusion: Digital device was found to be less accurate in detecting hypertension. Therefore, more similar research work is solicited to verify the accuracy of the very easy to use, the Digital BP monitor.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-122
Author(s):  
Padila Padila ◽  
Ida Agustien

This study aims to compare the average change in body temperature in a single wall incubator with a single wall incubator with hood in preterm infants with hypothermia. The design of this study uses a comparative descriptive method. The results of the study in the group of preterm infants with hypothermia in a single wall incubator with a lid significantly increased mean body temperature changes with a mean value of 36.09 variance 0.152 while for preterm infants with hypothermia in a single wall incubator a mean value of 35.35 variance values 0.859 and obtained t count from the two study groups namely 2.551 and 1.717 t table. In conclusion, a single wall incubator with a lid increases body temperature in premature infants with hypothermia compared to a single wall incubator.   Keywords: Hypothermia, Incubator, Premature


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
shuai fu ◽  
Min Yang ◽  
Si Xu ◽  
Sha Wu ◽  
Xiao Xiao ◽  
...  

Abstract Background We aimed to assess the performance of revised MDRD, CKD-EPI, BIS, FAS and XiangYa equation in Chinese adults Methods We collected blood biochemical data of 623 chinese adult hospitalised patients within 48 hours before they underwent 99m Tc-DTPA GFR measurement. We computed the bias (mGFR-eGFR), the precision (IQR) ,the accuray (P30)and root mean square error (RMSE) relative to mGFR of each equation to evaluate performance. The ROC curves, Kappa value of McNemar test, Bland-Altman plot and the Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) were used to evaluate diagnostic accuracy and concordance. Results Totally, the FAS combined Scr and cysC equation performed supreme accuracy(P30=57.5%, RMSE=19.26), the cysC-based equation performed superior to Scr-based equation. Detailed P30 of the CKD-EPI cysC , FAS cysC , MDRD, CKD-EPI Scr-cysC , CKD-EPI Scr , FAS Scr , XiangYa was 56.7%, 56.0%, 53.5%, 52.2%, 48.8%, 51.4%, 43.0%. The CKD-EPI cysC equation showed the lowest bias and the highest accuracy(bias=-2.23, P30=57.4%) in GFR<60ml/min/1.73m 2 , followed by the FASscr-cysC equation(bias=-6.89, P30=55.4%). The XiangYa equation perfomed best in GFR≥60ml/min/1.73m 2 while worst in GFR<60 ml/min/1.73m 2 with bias(-5.79 vs -19.05), IQR(18.21 vs 10.85), P30(86.2% vs 21.1%), RMSE(16.68 vs 21.34). The CKD-EPI cysC equation had the lowest bias and the best accuracy(bias=-2.23, P30=59.4%) in age ≥70 years adults, followed by the FAS Scr-cysC equation equivalented to BIS-2 Scr-cysC equation(bias -5.33 vs -4.90, P30=57.3%), while the XiangYa equation performed worstly (bias=-20.39, P30=26.6%). Best ROC AUC was gaven by the FAS Scr-cysC equation(0.951),so was it had the highest Kappa value(0.364). The lowest Bias showed in Bland-Altman plot was the CKD-EPI cysC equation(bias=7.46). The highest ICC value was gaven by the FAS Scr-cysC equation(0.921). Secondly, it was the XiangYa equation with the ICC of 0.912. Conclusions The FAS Scr-cysC equation is verified most suitable and simpler applied to Chinese population. The CKD-EPI cysC equation is appropriate used in moderately and severely injured GFR(CKD3-5stage) and Seniors over 70 years old. The XiangYa equation performed perfectly in slightly injured GFR (CKD1-2stage), while further verification of XiangYa equation in multiple region need to carried out especially in moderately and severely injured GFR and older adults.


2019 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keiji Hayashi ◽  
Nozomi Ito ◽  
Yoko Ichikawa ◽  
Yuichi Suzuki

Food intake increases metabolism and body temperature, which may in turn influence ventilatory responses. Our aim was to assess the effect of food intake on ventilatory sensitivity to rising core temperature during exercise. Nine healthy male subjects exercised on a cycle ergometer at 50% of peak oxygen uptake in sessions with and without prior food intake. Ventilatory sensitivity to rising core temperature was defined by the slopes of regression lines relating ventilatory parameters to core temperature. Mean skin temperature, mean body temperature (calculated from esophageal temperature and mean skin temperature), oxygen uptake, carbon dioxide elimination, minute ventilation, alveolar ventilation, and tidal volume (VT) were all significantly higher at baseline in sessions with food intake than without food intake. During exercise, esophageal temperature, mean skin temperature, mean body temperature, carbon dioxide elimination, and end-tidal CO2 pressure were all significantly higher in sessions with food intake than without it. By contrast, ventilatory parameters did not differ between sessions with and without food intake, with the exception of VT during the first 5 min of exercise. The ventilatory sensitivities to rising core temperature also did not differ, with the exception of an early transient effect on VT. Food intake increases body temperature before and during exercise. Other than during the first 5 min of exercise, food intake does not affect ventilatory parameters during exercise, despite elevation of both body temperature and metabolism. Thus, with the exception of an early transient effect on VT, ventilatory sensitivity to rising core temperature is not affected by food intake.


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