MEASUREMENT OF BODY-TEMPERATURE IN CLINIC AL-PRACTICE

Accurate measurement of body temperature is essential in routine medic al pratice. Development of new measurement methods, and awareness of m ercury hazards are lending to the modification of our current pratices . The range of body temperature in healthy individuals is 36.8 +/- 0.4 degrees C, bid it may be influenced by many factors. Therefore, body temperature should be measured in a standardized fashion, preferably a t rest, in the morning on waking. Febrile state is generally defined a s a morning rectal temperature above 37.5 degrees C. Body temperature is largely dependent of the site of measurement. Rectal temperature is the highest, and oral temperature measured in the sublingual pocket c lose to the lingual artery generally the lowest. Tympanic membrane tem perature is assumed to best reflect the core temperature. Axillary and cutaneous measures are unreliable. Mercury-in-glass thermometer used to measure rectal temperature still remains the reference in France. H owever, rectal measurement is inconvenient and associated with a risk of rectal injury and cross-infection Moreover, mercury-in-glass thermo meter results in high mercury pollution. Tendency is to replace it by either electronic thermometer to measure oral temperature, or infrared thermometer for tympanic membrane measure. Although reliable, chemica l measures are still underused.