ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: To determine if different temperature monitoring devices routinely used in postpartum mothers and newborns provide similar temperatures and to compare the rectal and axillary routes for temperature monitoring in newborns. DESIGN: A method comparison design with randomization of the temperature device sequence was used to evaluate the level of agreement between the 3 different types of thermometers used. SETTING: A Level 3 (high risk) postpartum unit with 6,200 deliveries per year in a 450-bed, not-for-profit hospital in the Pacific Northwest. PARTICIPANTS: A convenience sample of 36 mothers and 36 newborns were studied during a 96 hours postpartum period. METHOD: Comparison of 3 different temperature devices (2 different electronic temperatures devices and a disposable temperature device) in mothers and newborns; comparison of different routes for temperature measurement in newborns (rectal, axillary). RESULTS: Statistically significant differences were found between the rectal and axillary temperatures obtained with the same electronic temperature device in newborns. In mothers, there was a statistically significant difference in oral temperatures obtained with the disposable temperature device and 1 of the electronic thermometers. CONCLUSIONS: The statistically significant temperature differences between the axillary and rectal routes in newborns using the same temperature device emphasize that axillary temperatures are not similar to rectal temperatures in newborns.
