Efficacy of Prewarming With a Self-Warming Blanket for the Prevention of Unintended Perioperative Hypothermia in Patients Undergoing Hip or Knee Arthroplasty

PURPOSE: Unintended perioperative hypothermia (UPH) is a common and serious complication for patients undergoing anesthesia. The purpose of this study was to identify the incidence of UPH and evaluate the efficacy of a self-warming blanket on the drop in core temperature and risk of UPH in patients undergoing hip or knee arthroplasty.

DESIGN: A case-control study was used.

METHODS: Sixty patients were included. Thirty patients received prewarming with a self-warming blanket and forced-air warming intraoperatively; thirty patients received only forced-air warming intraoperatively.

FINDING: The incidence of UPH (<36°C) was identified in 13% of the patients in the prewarmed group and 43% of the patients in the control group. Mean core temperature in the prewarmed group was significantly higher and remained above 36°C in the perioperative period.

CONCLUSIONS: The study suggests that preoperative warming with a self-warming blanket reduces the incidence of UPH and decreases the drop in core temperature.