Physicians' perceptions regarding body temperature in health and disease.
Although body temperature has been monitored for more than a century as a means of distinguishing health from disease, physicians' perceptions of concepts of clinical thermometry are largely unknown. To characterize such perceptions, we did a descriptive analysis of responses to a survey questionnaire dealing with body temperature. Seventy-five percent of the 268 physicians and physicians-in-training surveyed offered 37 degrees C (98.6 degrees F) as their definition of "normal body temperature." Only 10 (4%) specified a particular body site (eg, oral or rectal) of temperature measurements in their definition. Although 98% believed that body temperature normally varies during the day, there was not a consensus as to the magnitude of such variability. There was also considerable disagreement as to the specific temperatures defining the lower and upper limits of the febrile range. Subjects exhibited a clear preference for the Fahrenheit scale in their responses. Medical students differed significantly from graduate physicians in several of the areas examined.
Mackowiak
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PA
Medical Service, Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
Wasserman
S S
SS
D001831:Body Temperature; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D005260:Female; D005334:Fever / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010820:Physicians; D013337:Students, Medical; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires