| Despite advances made in the surgical arena, unintentional hypothermia remains a common problem. The literature supports that even mild hypothermia can affect every major body system. A quantitative study was done on 200 postoperative patients who presented to the Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) hypothermic. Warm cotton blankets or radiant ceiling lights were applied upon admission to PACU. A comparision of the time needed to obtain normothermia was done. The use of radiant lights achieved normothermia 12% faster than the use of warm blankets, but this result was not statistically significant. |
