Evaluation of Chemical Dot Thermometers for Measuring Body Temperature of Orally Intubated Patients

2003 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 403-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Potter ◽  
Marilyn Schallom ◽  
Susan Davis ◽  
Carrie Sona ◽  
Maryellen McSweeney

• Background Recent research indicates that oral measurement of body temperature is a reliable option in orally intubated patients. In situations such as protective isolation, where dedicated electronic thermometers are not available, are single-use chemical dot thermometers an acceptable alternative?• Objective To determine the accuracy of single-use chemical dot thermometers in orally intubated adult patients.• Methods Subjects included a convenience sample of 85 adult patients admitted to 1 of 2 intensive care units (surgical trauma and neuroscience). For each patient, oral temperatures were measured concurrently (within 5 minutes) with a chemical dot thermometer and an electronic thermometer. The sequence of temperature measurements was alternated with each subsequent patient. Both thermometers were placed in the same posterior sublingual pocket opposite the side of the endotracheal tube.• Results Measurements obtained with electronic and single-use chemical dot thermometers correlated strongly (r = 0.937). With the chemical dot thermometer, body temperature was overestimated in 11.8% of the measurements and underestimated in 10.8% of the measurements by 0.4°C or more. The difference between oral temperatures measured with the 2 different thermometers was not related to the patient’s age, sex, or sublingual pocket location or to the order of thermometer use.• Conclusion The chemical dot thermometer is useful and reliable for measuring body temperature of orally intubated patients. When measurements of body temperature have important consequences for decisions about treatment, clinicians should use an electronic thermometer to confirm measurements made with a chemical dot thermometer.

2008 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 270-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Ledrick ◽  
Michael Plewa ◽  
Kevin Casey ◽  
Jay Taylor ◽  
Nancy Buderer

AbstractIntroduction: In the prehospital setting, optimal endotracheal tube (ETT) depth may be approximated using the patient's sex or height, and assessed by auscultation. Even when using these methods, the ETTs still may be placed at inappropriate depths.Problem: This study assessed the inter-rater reliability and accuracy of manual cuff palpation (ballottement) at excluding an improperly placed ETT depth in adult patients.Methods: This is a prospective, observational, pilot study in a convenience sample of adults recently intubated in the prehospital, medical floor, intensive care unit, or emergency department settings of an urban, teaching hospital. Two physician participants separately performed ballottement on each intubated subject and rated the ballottement as none, weak, or strong prior to assessment of appropriate depth using a chest radiograph (CXR). Results were compared for simple agreement and compared to the CXR to estimate accuracy.Results: Of 163 patients, 27 (17%) had an inappropriate ETT depth. Physician assessments of ballottement agreed in 79% of patients (95% CI = 72-85%). Chest radiograph assessment found the ETT in the “strong” ballottement group properly placed in 93%, as compared to 77% in the “weak”, and 42% in the “none” groups. Combining “weak” and “strong” ballottement, the sensitivity was 96% (95% CI = 93–100%), specificity was 26% (95% CI = 9–43%), and accuracy was 85% (95% CI = 79–90%).Conclusions: Manual cuff palpation is a simple and reproducible technique that is sensitive, but nonspecific, in identifying intubations of appropriate depth.


2021 ◽  
pp. archdischild-2020-320962
Author(s):  
Ruchi Sinha ◽  
Angela Aramburo ◽  
Akash Deep ◽  
Emma-Jane Bould ◽  
Hannah L Buckley ◽  
...  

ObjectiveTo describe the experience of paediatric intensive care units (PICUs) in England that repurposed their units, equipment and staff to care for critically ill adults during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.DesignDescriptive study.SettingSeven PICUs in England.Main outcome measures(1) Modelling using historical Paediatric Intensive Care Audit Network data; (2) space, staff, equipment, clinical care, communication and governance considerations during repurposing of PICUs; (3) characteristics, interventions and outcomes of adults cared for in repurposed PICUs.ResultsSeven English PICUs, accounting for 137 beds, repurposed their space, staff and equipment to admit critically ill adults. Neighbouring PICUs increased their bed capacity to maintain overall bed numbers for children, which was informed by historical data modelling (median 280–307 PICU beds were required in England from March to June). A total of 145 adult patients (median age 50–62 years) were cared for in repurposed PICUs (1553 bed-days). The vast majority of patients had COVID-19 (109/145, 75%); the majority required invasive ventilation (91/109, 85%). Nearly, a third of patients (42/145, 29%) underwent a tracheostomy. Renal replacement therapy was provided in 20/145 (14%) patients. Twenty adults died in PICU (14%).ConclusionIn a rapid and unprecedented effort during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, seven PICUs in England were repurposed to care for adult patients. The success of this effort was underpinned by extensive local preparation, close collaboration with adult intensivists and careful national planning to safeguard paediatric critical care capacity.


2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 51-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Liu ◽  
Mabel Wai ◽  
James Nunez

Background Transdermal lidocaine patches have few systemic toxicities and may be useful analgesics in cardiac surgery patients. However, few studies have evaluated their efficacy in the perioperative setting. Objective To compare the efficacy of topical lidocaine 5% patch plus standard care (opioid and nonopioid analgesics) with standard care alone for postthoracotomy or poststernotomy pain in adult patients in a cardiothoracic intensive care unit. Methods A single-center, retrospective cohort evaluation was conducted from January 2015 through December 2015 in the adult cardiothoracic intensive care unit at a tertiary academic medical center. Cardiac surgery patients with new sternotomies or thoracotomies were included. Patients in the lidocaine group received 1 to 3 topical lidocaine 5% patches near sternotomy and/or thoracotomy sites daily. Patches remained in place for 12 hours daily. Patients in the control group received standard care alone. Results The primary outcome was numeric pain rating for sternotomy/thoracotomy sites. Secondary outcomes were cardiothoracic intensive care unit and hospital lengths of stay and total doses of analgesics received. Forty-seven patients were included in the lidocaine group; 44 were included in the control group. Mean visual analogue scores for pain did not differ between groups (lidocaine, 2; control, 1.9; P = .58). Lengths of stay were similar for both groups (cardiothoracic intensive care unit: lidocaine, 3.06 days; control, 3.11 days; P = .86; hospital: lidocaine, 8.26 days; control, 7.61 days; P = .47). Conclusions Adjunctive lidocaine 5% patches did not reduce acute pain in postthoracotomy and post-sternotomy patients in the cardiothoracic intensive care unit.


2021 ◽  
Vol 42 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S172-S173
Author(s):  
Lauren B Nosanov ◽  
Kaitlyn Libraro ◽  
Jamie Heffernan ◽  
Philip H Chang ◽  
Abraham Houng ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction An institutional Burn Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Rounding Tool was implemented for both quality improvement data collection and trainee education. Forms are completed by trainee team members daily for all critically ill patients prior to teaching rounds. Gathered data are structured to facilitate evaluation of patient volume status, sepsis risk and ventilator management. The forms are then used to guide discussion among students, residents, mid-level providers, fellows, attending surgeons and other members of the multi-disciplinary rounding team. We conducted a series of interviews with trainees regarding their user experience to assess the tool’s educational utility. Methods A convenience sample of residents who had recently completed their Burn Surgery rotation were interviewed in a structured format. Questions focused on the form’s ease of use and comprehensibility. Emphasis was placed on the extent to which it stimulates learning while rounding. Additional feedback was sought for the purpose of improving the tool for continued use. Results Participants were post-graduate year one or two resident physicians training in General Surgery, Urology, Emergency Medicine or Anesthesia. Prior experience and comfort with ICU level care ranged from very little to moderate. All interviewees found the tool helpful in their patient assessments, though the current layout of the form was a frustration for many. Overall, they unanimously found the forms beneficial for preparation of patient presentations and felt that utilization during rounds facilitated learning. Conclusions Interviews with trainees on their burn surgery rotation demonstrate that implementation of an ICU Rounding Tool has provided educational benefit, particularly for those less experienced in intensive care. Feedback from this cohort will be used to improve the tool’s usability. Our next steps will include a more formal survey of all trainees involved since the inception of this project.


Viruses ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 1253
Author(s):  
Andrey A. Ivashchenko ◽  
Valeria N. Azarova ◽  
Alina N. Egorova ◽  
Ruben N. Karapetian ◽  
Dmitry V. Kravchenko ◽  
...  

COVID-19 is a contagious multisystem inflammatory disease caused by a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). We studied the efficacy of Aprotinin (nonspecific serine proteases inhibitor) in combination with Avifavir® or Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) drugs, which are recommended by the Russian Ministry of Health for the treatment therapy of moderate COVID-19 patients. This prospective single-center study included participants with moderate COVID-19-related pneumonia, laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2, and admitted to the hospitals. Patients received combinations of intravenous (IV) Aprotinin (1,000,000 KIU daily, 3 days) and HCQ (cohort 1), inhalation (inh) treatment with Aprotinin (625 KIU four times per day, 5 days) and HCQ (cohort 2) or IV Aprotinin (1,000,000 KIU daily for 5 days) and Avifavir (cohort 3). In cohorts 1–3, the combination therapy showed 100% efficacy in preventing the transfer of patients (n = 30) to the intensive care unit (ICU). The effect of the combination therapy in cohort 3 was the most prominent, and the median time to SARS-CoV-2 elimination was 3.5 days (IQR 3.0–4.0), normalization of the CRP concentration was 3.5 days (IQR 3–5), of the D-dimer concentration was 5 days (IQR 4 to 5); body temperature was 1 day (IQR 1–3), improvement in clinical status or discharge from the hospital was 5 days (IQR 5–5), and improvement in lung lesions of patients on 14 day was 100%.


2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ye Sun ◽  
Hua Fan ◽  
Xiao-Xia Song ◽  
Hua Zhang

Abstract Background The present study aimed to compare three fixation methods for orotracheal intubation. Methods Through literature retrieval, the effects of the adhesive/twill tape method, fixator method, and adhesive/twill tape–fixator alternation method on patients with tracheal intubation in the intensive care unit (ICU) were compared. Results The fixator and alternation methods were more effective in protecting the tongue mucosa and teeth. The alternation method was superior to the other two methods in maintaining the position of the endotracheal intubation. However, the difference in facial and lip injuries between the three methods was not statistically significant. Conclusion The fixator method can significantly reduce intraoral injury and is more suitable for older people with weak tongue mucosa and loose teeth. These are worth popularizing among a wider group.


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