How Accurate Are Tympanic and Infrared Skin Thermometers?

Measurements of tympanic heat and transcutaneous heat generated by temporal arteries have become common alternatives to measuring temperature by rectal thermometers in pediatric practices. But, how accurate are they? Researchers compared body temperature measurements taken with a rectal thermometer (gold standard), tympanic thermometer, and two infrared skin thermometers (Beurer and Thermofocus) in 100 children (age range, 2–18 years; 81% white) who were admitted to a single hospital in the Netherlands. Seven temperature measurements were performed within 5 minutes (2 tympanic, 2 pairs of infrared skin, and 1 rectal temperature). Thirty percent of tympanic measurements were conducted in children with evidence of ear pathology.

Mean temperatu…