Ingestible sensors correlate closely with peripheral temperature measurements in febrile patients

Abstract

Reliable non-invasive methods for measuring body temperature are essential for the diagnosis and monitoring of infectious disease. This study used Intraclass Correlation Coefficients (ICC) and the Bland- Altman plot to analyse the agreement between temperature measurements using an ingestible capsule sensor, a skin sensor and two non-invasive peripheral temperature measurements (axillary and infrared non-contact), collected from a population of febrile patient admitted for infectious disease. Of the 77 febrile patients screened, 26 patients were enrolled. The ICC between axillary temperature measurements (Taxi) vs. non-contact measurements (Tno-c) were 0.34 [-0.18; 0.63], 0.87 [0.55; 0.94] between Taxi vs. ingestible capsule measurements (Tcap) and 0.12 [-0.09; 0.37] between Taxi vs. Tetac. The mean difference between Taxi vs Tno-c was -1.18°C with limits of agreement (LoA) from -2.96 to 0.58°C. The mean difference between Taxi vs Tcap was 0.48°C, with LoA from -0.60 to 1.56 °C. The mean difference between Taxi vs Tetac was -4.23°C with LoA from -7.22 to -1.23 °C. Ingestible capsule measurements are reliable enough to adequately estimate the core body temperature in clinical practice. Its non-invasiveness, and the real-time remote control offer new opportunities for future research into fever during infectious diseases.