Thermoregulation: anesthetic and perioperative concerns

Abstract

Hypothermia has long been common in anesthesia and has largely been seen as an inconvenience. For many years, it was viewed as inevitable. But hypothermia is much more than an inconvenience, and it is no longer inevitable. Hypothermia is closely associated with significant morbidity both intraoperatively and postoperatively. Hypothermia may begin in the preoperative holding area, so efforts to prevent it should begin there as well. Effective intraoperative and postoperative warming methods are known and commonly available, but they remain underused. Understanding how and why core temperature declines in association with anesthesia and surgery and safe, effective methods to prevent that decline will enable nurse anesthetists and perioperative nurses to increase both the comfort and safety of their patients while reducing costs to the institution.