Influence of Hospital Environmental Variables on Thermometric Measurements and Level of Concordance: A Cross-Sectional Descriptive Study

Abstract

During a pandemic, and given the need to quickly screen febrile and non-febrile humans, it is necessary to know the concordance between different thermometers (TMs) and understand how environmental factors influence the measurements made by these instruments. Objective: The objective of this study is to identify the potential influence of environmental factors on the measurements made by four different TMs and the concordance between these instruments in a hospital setting. Method: The study employed a cross-sectional observational methodology. The participants were patients who had been hospitalised in the traumatology unit. The variables were body temperature, room temperature, room relative humidity, light, and noise. The instruments used were a Non Contract Infrared TM, Axillary Electronic TM, Gallium TM, and Tympanic TM. A lux meter, a sound level meter, and a thermohygrometer measured the ambient variables. Results: The study sample included 288 participants. Weak significant relationships were found between noise and body temperature measured with Tympanic Infrared TM, r = −0.146 (p < 0.01) and likewise between environmental temperature and this same TM, r = 0.133 (p < 0.05). The concordance between the measurements made by the four different TMs showed an Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) of 0.479. Conclusions: The concordance between the four TMs was considered “fair”.