MedPath

Preoperative Patient Warming for Prevention of Perioperative Hypothermia in Major Abdominal Surgery

Not Applicable
Completed
Conditions
Perioperative Hypothermia
General Anaesthesia
Temperature Monitoring
Prewarming
Preoperative Warming
Epidural Anaesthesia
Registration Number
NCT01795482
Lead Sponsor
University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein
Brief Summary

The study should evaluate how long patients undergoing major abdominal surgery under combined general/epidural anaesthesia have to be actively warmed preoperatively to prevent perioperative hypothermia and postoperative shivering. 99 patients will receive forced-air skin-surface warming for different duration. Body temperature will be measured at the tympanic membrane. The investigators hypothesize that active warming before starting the epidural anaesthesia will decrease the incidence of perioperative hypothermia.

Detailed Description

The aim of our study is to evaluate the performance of different durations of active preoperative skin-surface warming (prewarming) to prevent perioperative hypothermia in patients undergoing major abdominal surgery under combined general/epidural anaesthesia. The investigators plan to enroll 99 patients in 3 groups. Body temperature will be measured at the tympanic membrane. The investigators hypothesize that active warming before starting the epidural anaesthesia will decrease the incidence of perioperative hypothermia.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
99
Inclusion Criteria
  • age over 18 years
  • planned duration of surgery > 2 hours
  • planned for elective major abdominal surgery under combined epidural/general anaesthesia
  • written informed consent
  • American society of anesthesiologists status 1-3
Exclusion Criteria
  • duration of surgery < 90 min
  • withdrawal of consent
  • emergency surgery

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Incidence of hypothermic patients at arrival at PACU2 hours

After the operation patients will be admitted to the PACU. Here, body temperature will be assessed and the incidence of hypothermic patients (body temperature \< 36°C)will be measured.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod

Trial Locations

Locations (2)

University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Kiel

🇩🇪

Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany

Klinikum Pinneberg Klinik für Anästhesiologie, Intensivmedizin und OP-Management

🇩🇪

Pinneberg, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany

University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Kiel
🇩🇪Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany

MedPath

Empowering clinical research with data-driven insights and AI-powered tools.

© 2025 MedPath, Inc. All rights reserved.