Table 2.

Summary of current methods of temperature monitoring and their advantages and disadvantages.

Temperature monitoring device	Advantages	Disadvantages
Human touch	•Simple and quick •Inexpensive •Easy to implement	•Only accurate when performed by someone trained
Mercury-in-glass thermometer	•Traditionally considered gold standard	•Contains mercury •Long time required to reach stable temperature •Variable accuracy due to suboptimal use
Electronic thermometer	•Poses minimal risk •Provides rapid temperature readings •Probes allow for continuous monitoring and dual monitoring	•Variable accuracy depending on site •Skin measurements affected by environmental factors
Infrared tympanic thermometer	•Rapid and painless	•Variable accuracy depending on model used •Temperatures differ between protected & unprotected ears •Expensive
Temporal artery and mid-forehead infrared thermometers	•Rapid and painless •Causes minimal disturbance to the neonate	•Variable accuracy depending on site •Measurements affected by environmental factors •Expensive
Liquid crystal thermometry	•Simple and inexpensive •Able to be understood by non-literate and non-numerate carers •Accurate in detecting hypothermia <35.5°C	•Does not provide a specific temperature reading •Falls off occasionally
BEMPU TempWatch	•Continuous monitoring •Able to be understood by non-literate and non-numerate carers •Promotes skin-to-skin contact and weight gain	•Does not provide a specific temperature reading •Limited studies regarding its accuracy