How to Measure a Patient's Body Temperature

The hypothalamus is the thermostat for the human body. Temperature receptors located all over the human body send signals to the heat and cold sensitive neurons in the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus then triggers the body to perform certain actions in order to keep the body within a "safe" range of temperature.

If the hypothalamus senses that the body is too cold it will do things to increase heat: induce shivering and muscular activity; increase the amount of thyroid hormones and thus the metabolism; increase the amount of epinephrine, norepinephrine, and sympathetic innervation to increase metabolic rate and decrease radiation of heat.

If the hypothalamus senses that the body is too hot it will do things to get rid of that heat by increasing conduction and transfer of that heat back out to the environment: by sweating and dilating blood vessels.

It is common to teach CNA and nursing students that a rectal temperature should be about equal to an oral temperature if you subtract one degree... or an axillary temperature should be about equal to an oral temperature if you add one degree. DO NOT DO THIS WHEN YOU DOCUMENT. It is extremely important that you simply write the exact temperature measurement that you obtained and the method by which it was obtained.

Therefore you would not document an axillary temperature of 97.6 as a temperature of 98.6.... you would document it as 97.6 with the word axillary, the abbreviation ax. or an A inside a circle next to it (depending upon your hospital's preferred method.)

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