Abstract
Background: In recent years, otic thermometers to measure body temperature in children have become increasingly popular as they reflect changes in body temperature sooner than other thermometers. The have become valuable assets in hospital emergency rooms; however, their accuracy and reliability need further studies.
Objective: To compare corporal temperature readings between an otic thermometer and mercury axillary and rectal thermometers.
Patients and Method: 50 patients under the age of 5, who were treated at the emergency room of our hospital, were randomly chosen to participate in this study. Temperature was measured on their right and left ears using an otic thermometer, and their rectal and right axillary temperature was taken using mercury thermometers. Patients were separated into 2 subgroups for comparison, children under and over 6 months old.
Results: The results between the 2 subgroups were very similar. The average temperature obtained by rectal thermometers was 0.414°C higher than the average right-ear temperature (p < 0.001) and 0.438°c higher than the average left-ear temperature (p < 0.001).
Conclusion: The otic thermometer's reading is significantly lower than the one obtained using mercury rectal and axillary thermometers.
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