Comparative Evaluation of Calibrated and Non-calibrated Infrared Thermometer Versus Calibrated Digital Thermometer in Healthy Volunteers and Febrile Patients in a Tertiary Care Center in Central India

Abstract

Body temperature is a crucial indicator in assessing human physiological activity and health, particularly in pediatric and critically ill patients. This study aimed to compare temperature recordings obtained from digital calibrated thermometers with calibrated infrared thermometers and non-calibrated infrared thermometers against calibrated ones. An observational prospective study was conducted at AIIMS Bhopal, involving volunteers and febrile patients who consented to participate. Approval was obtained from the Institutional Human Ethics Committee, and 200 participants meeting inclusion/exclusion criteria were included. Data were collected and analyzed using Microsoft Excel. Mean and variance values were computed for both volunteer and febrile patient groups. The P values in both groups were less than 0.05, indicating a significant difference between non-calibrated handheld infrared thermometers (T1), calibrated digital thermometers (T2), and their individual comparison with calibrated infrared thermometers (T3). Variance was higher in non-calibrated infrared thermometers (T1) compared to calibrated ones (T2) in both healthy volunteers and febrile patients. Pearson’s correlation coefficient analysis within the febrile patient group demonstrated a robust positive correlation among all three thermometers compared to the healthy volunteers group. The study highlights variations in temperature readings when using different thermometers, irrespective of whether the assessment is conducted on healthy volunteers or febrile patients. Notably, the strength of association is lower in healthy volunteers than in febrile patients, suggesting that the interchangeability of thermometers may be more reliable and sufficient when assessing individuals with fever. These findings underscore the importance of careful consideration and validation of thermometer choices, especially in clinical settings where accurate temperature measurement is critical.

Keywords

• body temperature
• digital
• fever
• non-contact infrared
• thermometer