Agreement of Non-Contact Infrared Thermometer Measurement Results with Digital Axillary Thermometer in Neonates at the Pejeruk Community Health

Abstract

NCIT has several advantages, such as quick measurement time, no need for contact between the device and the patient, and greater comfort for patients compared to measuring temperature using TDA or rectal digital thermometers. These advantages make NCIT suitable for use in PKM. However, previous research on the comparability of NCIT measurement results with TDA in neonates is limited and shows varying results. This study aims to determine the agreement of NCIT measurement results with TDA measurement results in neonates. The study is an analytical observational study with a cross-sectional design. 25 neonates participated in this study, with some having their temperature measured only once and others more than once, according to an agreement with their guardians. A total of 62 temperature measurement samples were taken after going through the inclusion and exclusion process. The measuring instrument used was the digital axillary thermometer (TDA), which served as the reference. Additionally, three types of non-contact infrared thermometers (NCITs) were used to assess their agreement for this study. The sample data was analyzed using the One-Sample T-test, Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) method, and Bland Altman Plot. The ICC results indicated poor agreement of each NCIT with the TDA. The One Sample T-test indicates that of of the NCIT used does not have statistically significant differences compared to TDA, whereas two other types of NCIT do have statistically significant differences compared to TDA, The Bland Altman Plot analysis shows that the Limits of Agreement for each type of NCIT with TDA are still wide. From these results, it is concluded that these three types of NCIT cannot replace TDA as a body temperature measurement tool for neonates.