The influence of environmental conditions and inadvertent perioperative hypothermia on the patient’s condition
author:
ANNA CHARKOWSKA
ORCID ID:
0000-0001-6060-9895
No:
03/2021 Instal p. 31-36
DOI:
10.36119/15.2021.4.2
Environmental conditions (temperature, humidity, air flow velocity, mean radiation temperature) and individual
factors (physical activity, clothing insulation) affect the heat exchange between humans and the environment. In
thermal balance conditions, a feeling of thermal comfort appears and the body’s thermoregulatory system works
properly. In conditions where the thermoregulation mechanism is impaired, a person may be hypothermic or
hyperthermic instead of normothermic. One of these situations (hypothermia) can occur in the operating room.
Anesthesia, surgery and the operating room environment impair the body’s physiological thermoregulatory
mechanisms. Inadvertent perioperative hypothermia, defined as a drop in core body temperature below 36° C, is
the most common complication of perioperative care. The article focuses on the issues related to the occurrence of
hypothermia of the operated patient, referring also to the indoor conditions in the operating room, maintained as
a result of the operation of the ventilation and air conditioning system in the operating room.
Keywords:
About Authors:
Dr inż. Anna Charkowska, https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6060-9895 – Zakład Klimatyzacji i Ogrzewnictwa, Wydział Instalacji Budowlanych, Hydrotechniki i Inżynierii Środowiska, Politechnika Warszawska. Corresponding author:
anna.charkowska@pw.edu.pl