Touch detection of neonatal hypothermia in Nepal.
The use of touch by health workers to detect hypothermia was examined in 250 newborns in Nepal. Palpation of the feet shows fair interobserver agreement (kappa = 0.4-0.7) and high sensitivity (>80%) but low specificity (36%-74%) compared with axillary thermometry. Traditional birth attendants should feel an infant's feet to detect hypothermia.
Ellis
M
M
Centre for Child and Adolescent Health, Bristol University, UK. m.ellis@bristol.ac.uk
Manandhar
D
D
Hunt
L
L
Barnett
S
S
Azad
K
K
D003906:Developing Countries; D005528:Foot; D006801:Humans; D007035:Hypothermia / Q000175:diagnosis*; D007224:Infant Care / Q000379:methods*; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008880:Midwifery; D009390:Nepal; D015588:Observer Variation; D010808:Physical Examination / Q000379:methods*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014110:Touch