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be aware of.
"We know that anesthesia can profoundly affect the body's ability to main-
tain its internal temperature," says Dr. Silverton. "What this study demon-
strates is that orthopedic patients in their 70s and those with low body mass
further compounds the body to regulate its temperature. Further study is
needed to look at the association between infection and hypothermia when
a re-warming device is used."
Researchers theorize that it's possible the sustained increased rate of
hypothermia with active re-warmer use is the result of the devices being
applied in response to intraoperative hypothermia, rather than as a preven-
tative measure. They also says it's fair to wonder whether patients with
lower BMI have further impairment of their thermoregulation, with less
physiologic tolerance to alteration of thermoregulatory control, which
potentially affects their likelihood of experiencing intraoperative
