Vergleich zweier Wärmemanagementstrategien bei Kraniotomien

Perioperative temperature management is essential to prevent hypothermia in patients, which is associated with impaired coagulation, increased infection risk, and worse postoperative outcomes. However, excessive warming may lead to hyperthermia, which could potentially worsen neurological outcomes in patients with brain injury. In addition, perioperative warming methods differ in their energy consumption and contribute to the carbon footprint of healthcare, highlighting the importance of environmentally conscious anesthesia practice. This study first retrospectively evaluated the institutional standard of perioperative warming in craniotomy patients with regard to the incidence of hypothermia and hyperthermia. Subsequently, a prospective randomized controlled trial compared the current clinical standard of University Medical Center Göttingen with an intervention group involving earlier reduction of forced-air warming intensity. The aim was to assess whether hypothermia prevention remained effective while reducing hyperthermia and energy consumption. Retrospective analysis showed a hyperthermia incidence of 27% and a hypothermia incidence of 1%. In the prospective study, no hyperthermia occurred. Hypothermic measurements (