Abstract / Summary
Abstract Background Perioperative hypothermia is a preventable complication associated with adverse surgical outcomes; however, routine temperature monitoring and warming interventions remain inconsistently implemented in many resource-constrained surgical settings. This study determined the prevalence and factors associated with perioperative hypothermia among surgical patients at Mbale Regional Referral Hospital in eastern Uganda. Methods We conducted a hospital-based observational study among patients undergoing elective or emergency surgery. Participants were recruited consecutively. Tympanic temperature was measured using a calibrated infrared thermometer before induction of anesthesia, intraoperatively, and during the immediate postoperative period in the post-anesthesia care unit. Perioperative hypothermia was defined as any measured temperature below 36.0°C. Modified Poisson regression was used to estimate prevalence ratios and identify factors associated with perioperative hypothermia. Results Of 358 participants, most were female, aged 18–39 years, underwent emergency surgery, and received regional anesthesia. Overall, 121 participants developed perioperative hypothermia, giving a prevalence of 33.8% (95% CI: 28.9–39.0). Hypothermia was present before induction in 12.0% of participants, peaked one hour after induction of anesthesia at 21.6%, and declined to 11.2% by 30 minutes postoperatively. In adjusted analysis, older age was associated with a higher prevalence of perioperative hypothermia (aPR = 1.01; 95% CI: 1.01–1.02), as was longer surgical duration (aPR = 1.01; p = 0.003). Regional anesthesia was associated with lower prevalence compared with general anesthesia (aPR = 0.62; 95% CI: 0.46–0.84), while operating-room temperature > 30°C was also associated with lower prevalence (aPR = 0.67; 95% CI: 0.60–0.75). Conclusion Perioperative hypothermia affected approximately one-third of surgical patients at this regional referral hospital. Routine temperature monitoring and targeted warming strategies, particularly for older patients and those undergoing prolonged procedures, should be prioritized in similar low-resource surgical settings.