of the giving set around ‘hot hands’. These measures
were not undertaken in this case meaning that the
cooling fluids may have affected the ability to maintain
normothermia in the patient. The temperature
was measured rectally every 30 to 60 minutes until
the patient was normothermic. Rectal temperature
is not a measurement of the core temperature but
Archer (2007) endorses it as a simple way to obtain
and measure trends. Measuring rectal temperature
against the temperature found between the digits can
be a good indicator of peripheral perfusion; Leece
and Hill (2003) report the normal difference to be
approximately 3oC but this would be expected to be
greater in cases of hypoperfusion. Using the methods described above and with the knowledge obtained by
constant monitoring, the patient’s temperature returned
to normal and was able to be maintained for
the remainder of his stay.