Decrease In Mean Temperature Research Articles

Impact of diurnal temperature variations on hospitalization due to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases in Rafsanjan, Iran, in 2008-2013

Background Changes in global temperature and its health effects have recently been under much investigated. Consequently, these changes have affected mortality and morbidity rates which are important public health indices. The present study examines the effect of mean temperature on the frequency of hospitalization due to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases in Ali Ibn Abi Talib Hospital of Rafsanjan, Iran.Materials And Methods In this ecological study, data on hospitalization were gathered from electronic systems of hospitals and the data from the weather organizations were extracted from the weather station. All patients not living in Rafsanjan were excluded. Data were entered into SPSS and SAS software and the association between mean temperature and hospitalization frequency were analyzed using Poisson regression models.Results A negative significant association was found between mean temperature and mean number of hospitalizations due to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. By each 1 °C decrease in mean temperature, the mean number of hospitalizations due to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases increased by 1% (95% CI; 0.63-1.26%) and 4.33% (95% CI; 4-4.64%), respectively. For cardiovascular diseases, there was no significant difference in mean number of admissions based on different age groups. However, in the 0-4-year age group, the mean number of hospitalizations due to respiratory diseases was significantly higher than the other age groups. For both cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, there was no significant difference between females and males in terms of the mean number of hospitalizations.Conclusions Reduction in mean temperature, in the present study, increased the mean number of hospitalizations due to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases and it was stronger for respiratory diseases. According to these findings, people who are at risk of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases should be forbidden from exposure to extremely cold temperatures.

Preliminary clinical observations following intravenous blood transfusions in the sokoto gudali cattle, Sokoto, Nigeria

Preliminary clinical observations were carried out following intravenous blood transfusions in some eighteen (18) Sokoto Gudali cattle. Six (6) cattle as control, six (6) cattle designated as donors and six (6) as recipients. Blood was collected via venepuncture using commercial blood bags used for humans. The collected blood was immediately transfused to the recipients; observations for clinical signs, reactions and vital parameters were recorded. Repeat intravenous transfusions were also conducted and similar clinical observations were conducted. Reactions observed in recipient include; Hyperthermia tachycardia, hyperpnoea and anorexia. A mean increase of 7.83 cycle/min and 3.83 was observed for respiratory rate, heart beat rate and packed cell volume respectively. A mean decrease in temperature of 3.6 0 C was observed in the recipients. No mortality was recorded aside from those clinical observations.

The Effect of Cold Temperature on Increased Exacerbation of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Nationwide Study

BackgroundSeasonal variations in the acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) have been reported. However, the influence of air temperature and other meteorological factors on COPD exacerbation remains unclear.MethodsNational Health Insurance registry data from January 1, 1999 to December 1, 2009 and meteorological variables from the Taiwan Central Weather Bureau for the same period were analyzed. A case-crossover study design was used to investigate the association between COPD exacerbation and meteorological variables.ResultsA total of 16,254 cases who suffered from COPD exacerbation were enrolled. We found that a 1°C decrease in air temperature was associated with a 0.8% increase in the exacerbation rate on event-days (95% confidence interval (CI), 1.015–1.138, p = 0.015). With a 5°C decrease in mean temperature, the cold temperature (28-day average temperature) had a long-term effect on the exacerbation of COPD (odds ratio (OR), 1.106, 95% CI 1.063–1.152, p<0.001). In addition, elderly patients and those who did not receive inhaled medication tended to suffer an exacerbation when the mean temperature dropped 5°C. Higher barometric pressure, more hours of sunshine, and lower humidity were associated with an increase in COPD exacerbation.ConclusionsThis study demonstrated the effect of cold temperatures on the COPD exacerbation rate. Elderly patients and those without inhaled medicine before the exacerbation event were affected significantly by lower mean temperatures. A more comprehensive program to prevent cold stress in COPD patients may lead to a reduction in the exacerbations rate of COPD.

Preliminary clinical observation following intravenous blood transfusions in Ovines.

Preliminary clinical observations were carried out following intravenous blood transfusions in sheep. Twelve (12) adult sheep were used, six (6) as donors and six (6) as recipients. Blood was collected via venepuncture using commercial blood bags used fur humans. The collected blood was immediately transfused to the recipients; observations for clinical signs, reactions, and vital parameters were recorded. Repeat intravenous transfusions were also conducted and similar clinical observations were conducted. Reactions observed in recipient include Hyperthermia, Hyperthermia tachycardia, hyperpnoea and anorexia. A mean increase of 7.83 cycle/min and 3.83 was observed for respiratory rate, heart beat rate and packed cell volume respectively. A mean decrease in temperature of -3.6 o c was observed in the recipients. No mortality was recorded aside from those clinical observations.

Spatiotemporal changes of wheat phenology in China under the effects of temperature, day length and cultivar thermal characteristics

Investigating the spatiotemporal changes of crop phenology in field is important to understand the processes and mechanisms of crop response and adaption to ongoing climate change. Here, the wheat phenology at more than 100 national agro-meteorological experiment stations across China spanning the years 1981–2007 was examined. Spatiotemporal changes of wheat phenology and seasonal temperature, as well as the correlations between them were presented. During the investigation period, heading dates advanced significantly at 43 stations from the 108 investigated stations; maturity dates advanced significantly at 41 stations from the 109 investigated stations. Lengths of growing period (from sowing to maturity) and vegetative growing period (from sowing to heading) were significantly reduced at about 30% of the investigated stations, especially for spring wheat in northwestern China, despite thermal accumulation during the periods increased. In contrast, although significantly and negatively related to mean temperature, lengths of reproductive growing period (from heading to maturity) increased at 60% of the investigated stations, owing to increase in crop cultivars thermal requirements or/and decrease in mean temperature. The results showed that besides the complex influences of agronomic factors, climate change contributed substantially to the shift of wheat phenology. Mean day length during vegetative growing period had a decreasing trend at most of the investigated stations owing to delay of sowing date or/and advancement of heading date, which counterbalanced the roles of temperature in controlling the duration of vegetative growing period. In-depth analyses showed that thermal requirements from sowing to almost each development stage increased, however the thermal requirements to complete each single development stage changed differently, which tended to increase yield and adapt to ongoing climate change. Our findings have important implications for improving climate change impact studies, for breeding scientists to breed higher yielding cultivars, and for agricultural production to cope with ongoing climate change.

Simulation Research of Natural Gas Injection Timing on Combustion Process in a Diesel Engine Fueled with Pilot-Ignited Directly-Injected Natural Gas

The numerical model of diesel engine fueled with pilot-ignited directly-injected natural gas is built, and the influence of natural gas injection timing on the combustion process is studied using CFD software. And obtained the following conclusions, as the delay of natural gas injection timing, the maximum of the mean pressure and mean temperature decrease gradually and the timings for the maximum value increase. With every delay of 5 °CA of the injection, the mean pressure reduces by about 16%.As the delay of injection timing, the delay of the timing of the high temperature and the range decrease for the high temperature region, and this is beneficial for the emission of NO, but not conducive to the emission of HC、CO and PM

Responses of diatoms to the Younger Dryas climatic reversal in a South Carpathian mountain lake (Romania)

A high-resolution paleolimnological study from Lake Brazi, a small mountain lake in the Southern Carpathian Mountains, Romania, shows distinct diatom responses to late glacial and early Holocene climate change between ca. 15,750 and 10,000 cal year BP. Loss-on-ignition, titanium, sulphur, phosphorus, biogenic silica content, and diatom assemblage composition were used as proxies for past environmental changes. Total epilimnetic phosphorus (TP) concentrations and lakewater pH were reconstructed quantitatively using diatom-TP and pH transfer functions. The most remarkable changes in the aquatic ecosystem were found at ca. 12,870 and 10,400 cal year BP. Whereas the onset of the Younger Dryas (YD) climatic reversal was conspicuous in our record, the beginning of the Holocene was not well marked. Two diatom assemblage zones characterize the YD in Lake Brazi, suggesting a bipartite division of this climatic oscillation. The diatom responses to the YD cooling were (1) a shift from Staurosira venter to Stauroforma exiguiformis dominance; (2) a decrease in overall diatom diversity; (3) a decrease in lake productivity, inferred from DI-TP, organic matter, and biogenic silica content; and (4) a lowering of the DI-pH. Compositional change of the diatom assemblages suggested a sudden shift towards more acidic lake conditions at 12,870 cal year BP, which is interpreted as a response to prolonged ice cover and thus shorter growing seasons and/or enhanced outwash of humic acids from the catchment. Taking into account the chironomid-based inference of only moderate July mean temperature decrease (<1 °C), together with the pollen-inferred regional opening of the forest cover and expansion of steppe-tundra, our data suggest that ecosystem changes in the Southern Carpathians during the YD were likely determined by strong seasonal changes.

Effects of weather variability and air pollutants on emergency admissions for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases

We examined the effect of ambient temperature, air pressure and air pollutants on daily emergency admissions by identifying the cause of admission for each type of stroke and cardiovascular disease using generalized linear Poisson regression models allowing for overdispersion, and controlling for seasonal and inter-annual variations, days of the week and public holidays, levels of influenza and respiratory syncytial viruses. Every 1°C decrease in mean temperature was associated with an increase in the daily number of emergency admissions by 7.83% (95% CI 2.06–13.25) for acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and heart failure, by 35.57% (95% CI 15.59–59.02) for intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) and by 11.71% (95% CI 4.1–19.89) for cerebral infarction. An increase of emergency admissions due to ICH (3.25% (95% CI 0.94–5.51)), heart failure (3.56% (95% CI 1.09–5.96)) was observed at every 1 hPa decrease in air pressure from the previous days. We found stronger detrimental effect of cold on stroke than cardiovascular disease.

Induction of prehospital therapeutic hypothermia after resuscitation from nonventricular fibrillation cardiac arrest*

To evaluate the effects on temperature and outcome at hospital discharge of a pre-hospital rapid infusion of large volume, ice-cold intravenous Hartmann's solution in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and an initial cardiac rhythm of asystole or pulseless electrical activity. Prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial. Pre-hospital emergency medical service and 12 critical care units in Melbourne, Australia. One hundred and sixty three patients who had been resuscitated from cardiac arrest with an initial cardiac rhythm of asystole or pulseless electrical activity. : Patients were randomized to either pre-hospital cooling using a rapid infusion of up to two litres ice-cold Hartmann's solution (82 patients) or cooling after hospital admission (81 patients). The planned duration of therapeutic hypothermia (32 °C-34 °C) in both groups was 24 hrs. Patients allocated to pre-hospital cooling received a median of 1500 ml of ice-cold fluid. This resulted in a mean decrease in core temperature of 1.4 °C compared with 0.2 °C in hospital cooled patients (p < .001). The time to therapeutic hypothermia (<34 °C) was 3.2 hrs in the pre-hospital cooled group compared with 4.8 hrs in the hospital cooled group (p = .0328). Both groups received a mean of 15 hrs cooling in the hospital and only 7 patients in each group were cooled for 24 hrs. Overall, there was no difference in outcomes at hospital discharge with favorable outcome (discharge from hospital to home or rehabilitation) in 10 of 82 (12%) in the pre-hospital cooled patients, compared with 7 of 81 (9%) in the hospital cooled patients (p = .50). In the patients with a cardiac cause of the arrest, 8 of 47 patients (17%) who received pre-hospital cooling had a favorable outcome at hospital discharge compared with 3 of 43 (7%) in the hospital cooled group (p = .146). In adults who have been resuscitated from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest with an initial cardiac rhythm of asystole or pulseless electrical activity, pre-hospital cooling using a rapid infusion of large-volume, ice cold intravenous Hartmann's solution decreases core temperature at hospital arrival and decreases the time to therapeutic hypothermia. In patients with a cardiac cause of the arrest, this treatment may increase the rate of favorable outcome at hospital discharge. Further larger studies should evaluate the effects of pre-hospital cooling when the initial cardiac rhythm is asystole or pulseless electrical activity, particularly in patients with a cardiac cause of the arrest.

Impact of cold indoor thermal environmental conditions on human thermal response

To explore the thermal responses under the non-thermal equilibrium cold environmental conditions, a laboratory study was conducted in climate chamber. The local skin temperatures and thermal sensation of 20 subjects were recorded at 10 min intervals for 90 min under air temperatures of 7.4, 9.1, 11 and 15 °C. The results show that both local skin temperatures and mean skin temperature decrease not only with the drop of ambient air temperature but also with the exposure time. Local thermal sensation and overall the thermal sensation have the similar temperature-varying and time-varying characteristics. Predicted mean vote (PMV) model cannot correctly predict the thermal sensation under non-thermal equilibrium cold environment. The correlation between local thermal sensation and local skin temperatures shows that thermal sensation is closely related to skin temperature. Skin temperature is an effective indicator of thermal sensation. A linear relationship model between overall thermal sensation and mean skin temperature, considering both ambient temperature and exposure time, was established in the non-thermal equilibrium cold environment, which makes the evaluation of thermal sensation more objective.

Efficacy of intravenous fluid warming for maintenance of core temperature during lower segment cesarean section under spinal anesthesia

Introduction: Maintenance of body temperature of obstetrical patients undergoing cesarean section is complicated by a variety of factors including heat loss to atmosphere, infusion of fluids at room temperature, disruption of thermoregulatory mechanisms by epidural or spinal anesthesia and redistribution hypothermia. Infusion of warm fluids is an important method of heat conservation. Hence, we evaluated the efficacy of intravenous fluid warming in preventing hypothermia by observing the change in core temperature with intravenous fluids at room temperature (22°C and 39°C) in patients undergoing lower segment cesarean section under spinal anesthesia. Materials and Methods: Sixty-four patients belonging to ASA grade I and II were randomly allocated to either of the two groups. Group I received intravenous fluids at room temperature (22°C) and group II received intravenous fluids via fluid warmer (39°C). Core temperature was recorded at every 1 min for the first 5 min, followed by 10 min till the end of surgery using a tympanic thermometer. Results: The mean decrease in core temperature in group I was -2.184 ± 0.413 and -1.934 ± 0.439 in group II. The comparison of group I and II showed a statistically significant difference in mean core temperatures at times 5, 50, 60, 70, 80 and 90 min and immediately on arrival in the recovery room. A lower incidence of shivering was seen in group II patients, but the difference in the two groups was not statistically significant. Conclusion: Infusion of warm intravenous fluids resulted in a lesser degree of fall in core temperature, thereby providing a significant temperature advantage; however, this did not translate to prevention of postoperative shivering.

Solar Activity and Svalbard Temperatures

The long temperature series at Svalbard (Longyearbyen) show large variations and a positive trend since its start in 1912. During this period solar activity has increased, as indicated by shorter solar cycles. The temperature at Svalbard is negatively correlated with the length of the solar cycle. The strongest negative correlation is found with lags 10–12 years. The relations between the length of a solar cycle and the mean temperature in the following cycle are used to model Svalbard annual mean temperature and seasonal temperature variations. Residuals from the annual and winter models show no autocorrelations on the 5 per cent level, which indicates that no additional parameters are needed to explain the temperature variations with 95 per cent significance. These models show that 60 per cent of the annual and winter temperature variations are explained by solar activity. For the spring, summer, and fall temperatures autocorrelations in the residuals exist, and additional variables may contribute to the variations. These models can be applied as forecasting models. We predict an annual mean temperature decrease for Svalbard of °C from solar cycle 23 to solar cycle 24 (2009–20) and a decrease in the winter temperature of °C.

Induction of Therapeutic Hypothermia by Paramedics After Resuscitation From Out-of-Hospital Ventricular Fibrillation Cardiac Arrest

Therapeutic hypothermia is recommended for the treatment of neurological injury after resuscitation from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Laboratory studies have suggested that earlier cooling may be associated with improved neurological outcomes. We hypothesized that induction of therapeutic hypothermia by paramedics before hospital arrival would improve outcome. In a prospective, randomized controlled trial, we assigned adults who had been resuscitated from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest with an initial cardiac rhythm of ventricular fibrillation to either prehospital cooling with a rapid infusion of 2 L of ice-cold lactated Ringer's solution or cooling after hospital admission. The primary outcome measure was functional status at hospital discharge, with a favorable outcome defined as discharge either to home or to a rehabilitation facility. A total of 234 patients were randomly assigned to either paramedic cooling (118 patients) or hospital cooling (116 patients). Patients allocated to paramedic cooling received a median of 1900 mL (first quartile 1000 mL, third quartile 2000 mL) of ice-cold fluid. This resulted in a mean decrease in core temperature of 0.8 degrees C (P=0.01). In the paramedic-cooled group, 47.5% patients had a favorable outcome at hospital discharge compared with 52.6% in the hospital-cooled group (risk ratio 0.90, 95% confidence interval 0.70 to 1.17, P=0.43). In adults who have been resuscitated from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest with an initial cardiac rhythm of ventricular fibrillation, paramedic cooling with a rapid infusion of large-volume, ice-cold intravenous fluid decreased core temperature at hospital arrival but was not shown to improve outcome at hospital discharge compared with cooling commenced in the hospital.

Comparação da eficácia de doses iguais de acetaminofeno retal e oral em crianças

OBJETIVO: Comparar uma dose de acetaminofeno oral e retal e avaliar a aceitabilidade do acetaminofeno retal, uma vez que o acetaminofeno oral e retal e amplamente usado como agente antipiretico em criancas com febre e a eficiencia comparativa dessas duas preparacoes nao esta bem estabelecida. METODOS: Neste estudo prospectivo de grupos paralelos, foram incluidas 60 criancas admitidas na emergencia ou clinica ambulatorial pediatrica em um hospital terciario, com idade entre 6 meses e 6 anos e com temperatura retal acima de 39 °C. Os pacientes foram distribuidos aleatoriamente em dois grupos de mesmo tamanho. O grupo 1 recebeu 15 mg/kg de acetaminofeno retal, e o grupo 2 recebeu a mesma dose oralmente. A temperatura foi registrada no tempo zero e 1 e 3 horas apos administracao da droga. RESULTADOS: No primeiro grupo, a reducao media de temperatura, 1 e 3 horas apos administracao do acetaminofeno, foi de 1,07±0,16 (p 0,05). CONCLUSAO: As preparacoes oral e retal de acetaminofeno tem eficacia antipiretica equivalente em criancas. A via retal mostrou ser tao aceitavel quanto a oral entre os pais.

Comparison of antipyretic effectiveness of equal doses of rectal and oral acetaminophen in children

To compare a dose of oral and rectal acetaminophen and to evaluate acceptability of rectal acetaminophen, since oral and rectal acetaminophen is widely used as an antipyretic agent in febrile children and the comparative effectiveness of these two preparations is not well established. In this prospective parallel group designed study, 60 children who presented to the emergency department or outpatient pediatric clinic at a tertiary hospital and aged from 6 months to 6 years with rectal temperature over 39 degrees C were enrolled. Patients were randomly assigned to two equal-sized groups. Group 1 received 15 mg/kg acetaminophen rectally and group 2 received the same dose orally. Temperature was recorded at baseline and 1 and 3 hours after drug administration. In the first group, mean decrease in temperature, 1 and 3 hours after administration of acetaminophen was 1.07+/-0.16 (p < 0.001) and 1.74+/-0.25 degrees C (p < 0.001), respectively, and in the second group it was 1.98+/-0.19 (p < 0.001) and 1.70+/-0.14 degrees C (p < 0.001), respectively (p > 0.05). Rectal and oral acetaminophen preparations have equal antipyretic effectiveness in children. The rectal route proved to be as acceptable as the oral one among parents.

Monitoring plant diversity and climatic change in Sierra Nevada (Spain)

The aim of this paper is to analyse the vascular flora and temperature data in the highest zone of the Sierra Nevada massif (Sierra Nevada National Park) and evaluate the potential effects of climatic change on the biodiversity of this zone. The floristic and temperature data have been recorded using the methodology of the European Gloria Project. The floristic analysis shows that the species richness decreases with the altitude (2778–3327 m) from 47 up to 18, at the same time increasing the percentage of endemism. 39% of species only live on single summits and 8% of the flora exists on all of the summits; chamae- phytes and hemicryptophytes are the most common life forms. The temperature data was analysed in the period of 2001–2005. Overall, there is a 4.42 °C decrease in mean temperature from the lowest to the highest summit (range of 549 m).

Effect of thermal stress on Frank–Starling relations in humans

The Frank-Starling 'law of the heart' is implicated in certain types of orthostatic intolerance in humans. Environmental conditions have the capacity to modulate orthostatic tolerance, where heat stress decreases and cooling increases orthostatic tolerance. The objective of this project was to test the hypothesis that heat stress augments and cooling attenuates orthostatic-induced decreases in stroke volume (SV) via altering the operating position on a Frank-Starling curve. Pulmonary artery catheters were placed in 11 subjects for measures of pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP) and SV (thermodilution derived cardiac output/heart rate). Subjects experienced lower-body negative-pressure (LBNP) of 0, 15 and 30 mmHg during normothermia, skin-surface cooling (decrease in mean skin temperature of 4.3 +/- 0.4 degrees C (mean +/- s.e.m.) via perfusing 16 degrees C water through a tubed-lined suit), and whole-body heating (increase in blood temperature of 1.0 +/- 0.1 degrees C via perfusing 46 degrees C water through the suit). SV was 123 +/- 8, 121 +/- 10, 131 +/- 7 ml prior to LBNP, during normothermia, skin-surface cooling, and whole-body heating, respectfully (P = 0.20). LBNP of 30 mmHg induced greater decreases in SV during heating (-48.7 +/- 6.7 ml) compared to normothermia (-33.2 +/- 7.4 ml) and to cooling (-10.3 +/- 2.9 ml; all P < 0.05). Relating PCWP to SV indicated that cooling values were located on the flatter portion of a Frank-Starling curve because of attenuated decreases in SV per decrease in PCWP. In contrast, heating values were located on the steeper portion of a Frank-Starling curve because of augmented decreases in SV per decrease in PCWP. These data suggest that a Frank-Starling mechanism may contribute to improvements in orthostatic tolerance during cold stress and orthostatic intolerance during heat stress.

The effect of temperature on mortality in rural Bangladesh—a population-based time-series study

Studies in urban cities have consistently shown evidence of increased mortality in association with hot and cold weather. However, few studies have examined temperature-mortality relationship in the rural areas of developing countries. In this study we therefore aimed to characterize the daily temperature-mortality relationships in rural Bangladesh. A generalized linear Poisson regression model was used to regress a time-series of daily mortality for all-cause and selected causes against temperature, controlling for seasonal and interannual variations, day of week and public holidays. A total of 13 270 all-cause deaths excluding external causes for residents under demographic surveillance in Matlab, Bangladesh were available between January 1994 and December 2002. There was a marked increase in all-cause deaths and deaths due to cardiovascular, respiratory and perinatal causes at low temperatures over a lag of 0-13 days. Every 1 degrees C decrease in mean temperature was associated with a 3.2% (95% CI 0.9-5.5) increase in all-cause mortality. However, there was no clear heat effect on all-cause mortality for any of the lags examined. This study found that daily mortality increased with low temperatures in the preceding weeks, while there was no association found between high temperatures and daily mortality in rural Bangladesh. Preventive measures during low temperatures should be considered especially for young infants.

Effectiveness of humidifying CO2 gas on hypothermia during laparoscopic surgery

Intra-operative hypothermia caused by a pneumoperitoneum is common in patients during laparoscopic surgery. Hypothermia is known to cause many adverse complications. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the factors influencing hypothermia. Core temperatures during surgery were recorded in patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery (n=158). Forty-seven and 51 patients were insufflated with heated CO2 gas and humidified gas, respectively. The room temperature was kept at 25°C, and warming blankets were placed under the patients. Bottles of infusate and saline (for irrigation) were kept at 37°C. The parameters for multiple regression analysis included: age, BMI, duration of surgery, initial body temperature, and the mean decrease in temperature (maximal decrease and the decrease at the end of surgery) in 3 groups (control [n= 60], warmed gas [n= 47], humidified gas [n= 51]) ; were analyzed to evaluate the effectiveness of warm and humidified gas; there was no significant difference in those parameters influencing body temperature. Multiple regression analysis showed that the factors had a significant correlation with the decrease in BMI, duration of surgery, initial body temperature, and humidified gas. The mean maximal decrease in temperature in the control, warmed gas, and humidified gas groups was 1.03 °C, 0.90 °C, and 0.75°C, respectively; here was no statistical significance between the groups. The mean decrease in temperature at the end of surgery in the control, warmed gas, and humidified gas groups was 0.93 °C, 0.84 °C, and 0.49°C, respectively; there was statistical significance between the humidified gas group and the other groups.

Effects of low humidity and high air velocity in a heated room on physiological responses and thermal comfort after bathing: An experimental study

Objective In the present study we investigated the effects of low relative humidity (RH) and high air velocity (VA) on physiological and subjective responses after bathing in order to present the evidence for required nursing intervention after bathing. Methods Eight healthy male subjects participated in this experiment. There were four thermal conditions which combined RH (20% of 60%) and VA (low: less than 0.2 m/s or high: from 0.5 to 0.7 m/s). After taking a tub bath, subjects sat for 80 min in the test room under each condition. In addition, one condition under which the subjects were exposed to 20% RH and high VA condition for 80 min without bathing condition was conducted. Results A decrease in mean skin temperature ( T ¯ sk ), dryness of the skin and eyes were observed, though thermal comfort and warmth retained, due to spending time after bathing in a low RH and high VA environment, compared to the condition without bathing. Moreover, dryness of the skin, a decrease in hydration of the skin and an increase in transepidermal water loss (TEWL) after bathing were significantly affected by RH levels, on the other hand subjective coolness, discomfort and perception of dryness in the eye were significantly affected by VA levels. The decrease in T ¯ sk after bathing was significantly affected by both RH and VA. Conclusion From our findings we concluded that low RH and high VA have negative effects on humans after bathing, for example a decrease in body temperature and dryness of the skin and eyes. Moreover, it was indicated that the negative effects could be kept to a minimum and thermal comfort remain higher, if RH and VA levels were controlled within the optimum ranges.