Temporal artery thermometry utilization in pediatric emergency care.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the effectiveness of temporal artery thermometry (TAT) as an alternative for temperature assessment of children 1 to 4 years of age in the pediatric emergency department.

METHODS

Prospective cross-sectional study conducted at an urban children's hospital emergency department. TAT and rectal temperatures are compared in a convenience sample of children 1 to 4 years of age. Comparison of the temperatures is performed using Pearson correlation coefficient and regression analysis.

RESULTS

TAT and rectal temperatures are measured in 42 children 1 to 4 years of age. TAT predicts 83% of rectal temperatures. A receiver operating characteristic curve analysis shows that a cutoff of 37.7 degrees C or greater for fever in TAT is equivalent to rectal temperature greater than or equal to 38.3 degrees C with 100% sensitivity and 93.5% specificity.

CONCLUSION

TAT is an effective screening tool in identifying fever in children 1 to 4 years of age.