Abstract
For many years, the role of thermometry was limited to systemic (core body temperature) measurements (e.g., pulmonary catheter) or its approximation using skin/mucosa (e.g., axillary, oral, or rectal) temperature measurements. With recent advances in material science and technology, thermal measurements went beyond core body temperature measurements and found their way in many medical specialties. The article consists of two primary parts. In the first part we overviewed current clinical thermal measurement technologies across two dimensions: (a) direct vs. indirect and (b) single-point vs. multiple-point temperature measurements. In the second part, we focus primarily on clinical applications in wound care, surgery, and sports medicine. The primary focus here is the thermographic imaging modality. However, other thermal modalities are included where relevant for these clinical applications. The literature review identified two primary use scenarios for thermographic imaging: inflammation-based and perfusion-based. These scenarios rely on local (topical) temperature measurements, which are different from systemic (core body temperature) measurements. Quantifying these types of diseases benefits from thermographic imaging of an area in contrast to single-point measurements. The wide adoption of the technology would be accelerated by larger studies supporting the clinical utility of thermography.
Highlights
The concept of body heat as a marker of disease has a long history in clinical practice
While it is difficult to establish the priority of the thermometer invention, it is known that Santorio Sanctorius (1561–1636), a physician from Padua, was the first, who developed and applied thermometers to determine patients’ body heat (Santorio et al, 1646)
A case report suggested that thermography of patients with hidradenitis suppurativa has value in planning the surgical excision of the diseased area and that once the inflamed tissue is removed, the areas of positive temperature gradient normalize over time (Polidori et al, 2017), or that the lesions observed can be mapped to other medical imaging modalities, such as magnetic resonance (Derruau et al, 2018)
Summary
The concept of body heat as a marker of disease has a long history in clinical practice. Temperature studies conducted on 35 patients with diabetes showed that the sensors used in the socks are reliable and accurate at detecting temperature and the findings matched clinical observations.
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