[Efficacy of Warm Touch warming system for hypothermia].

Anesthetized surgical patients frequently become hypothermic, because of decreased metabolic heat production, increased heat loss, surgical exposure, and dry respiration gases. Intraoperative hypothermia may trigger postoperative protein breakdown, shivering, myocardial ischemia, and many other problems. For that reason, heat conservation is a major anesthetic management. We determined the efficacy of Warm Touch warming system (Mallinckrodt Medical, Inc.) compared with that of a warming blanket. Sixteen patients undergoing oral and maxillo-facial surgery under neuroleptanesthesia were studied by measuring rectal and finger-tip skin temperature. Patients were divided in Warm Touch group (n = 8) using Warm Touch warming system Model 5100 and warming blanket group (n = 8) and the temperatures were measured every quarter over 60 minutes. Rectal temperature increased 0.62 degrees C after 60 minutes in the Warm Touch group, but significant changes were absent in warming blanket group. Temperature gradient between the rectum and finger-tip skin decreased markedly in the Warm Touch group. This study suggests that Warm Touch is useful to restore body temperature and to prevent postoperative problems arising from intraoperative hypothermia.