Preventing perioperative hypothermia is clinically feasible and cost effective

Abstract

Inadvertent perioperative hypothermia is associated with serious adverse surgical outcomes including increased infection rates, morbid cardiac events and surgical bleeding. Surgical patients are particularly at risk of hypothermia because of ‘anaesthetic-induced impairment of thermoregulatory control’ and the ‘cool operating room’ temperature that create the perfect combination for developing hypothermia post-surgery.