Kinda embarrassing. But I get so warm under those gowns, hats, masks, layers of gloves...and I sweat like mad. It is super uncomfortable. What do you guys do? How low do you keep the OR temp? I swear, when I am attending someday my OR will be 40F...
Do you sweat when you operate?
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Ha! That's what you think. When you're an attending, there will be a loser circulating nurse, who thinks her comfort is more important than yours, and even though the patient's life is dependent on your concentration, will keep the heat cranked up. Oh, and the gas-passer behind the curtain will say it's necessary to keep the room warm so the patient can maintain normothermia. Since your're scrubbed, your only recourse will be throwing an instrument at that loser circulator. Then she'll write you up, and you'll have to go to anger management classes.
When did surgeons lose control??😕
I sweat a decent amount....especially in the burn and pediatric cases.
The most important person in the room is still the patient, so I always ensure normothermia with them. However, once I've confirmed normothermia, I immediately request to turn the room temp down.
One tip that helps is making sure anesthesia gets a Baer hugger on there, sometimes both upper and lower.
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I'm not much of a sweater, even when exercising and am typically hypothermic. Its one reason I live where I do. Only in burns and peds cases was I ever too warm.
The ideal room temp is when anesthesia is wearing a jacket and the circulator has a blanket from the warmer wrapped around her waist.
As long as the patient is normothermic, the room is whatever temperature I say it is (not sure what's going on with kirug's attendings). In the community, those "loser circulator nurses" know they won't have a job if the surgeons don't bring cases to their hospitals, so they are much more likely to do what I say and if they don't, I tell the supervisor that they are never to be in my room again.
The ideal room temp is when anesthesia is wearing a jacket and the circulator has a blanket from the warmer wrapped around her waist.
As long as the patient is normothermic, the room is whatever temperature I say it is (not sure what's going on with kirug's attendings). In the community, those "loser circulator nurses" know they won't have a job if the surgeons don't bring cases to their hospitals, so they are much more likely to do what I say and if they don't, I tell the supervisor that they are never to be in my room again.
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I sweat profusely during my first case of the day, everyday (be my first case at 7:30 or 4:00), but the problem generally goes away after that. My body is pretty good with temperature autoregulation (thank you north Texas upbringing), but I think I get some sort of sympathetic surge (even after 5 years of this) during my first case every day.
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Even as a student, I would get a pretty good sweat going. Even worse during endovascular cases when I had to wear lead the whole time. I started wearing Under Armor (the cut off shirts) under my scrub top, and it helped quite a bit. I would still sweat, but it avoided that nasty feeling (and visual) of damp scrubs.
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You want to see some sweat! Check out an ortho room. A couple hours wearing lead while doing some good ole' hammering and sawing really gets the juices flowing! 😀
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I tend to sweat early in the day, especially if I've had a bunch of coffee. Otherwise it's only really an issue in pedi cases or if we do a combo case with one of the plastics guys who wants it 900 degrees in the room.
We definitely have the circulator that thinks her comfort is more important that the people operating, but I comfirm normal pt body temperature and then let her have it. Funny thing is she always has this lame "pt is cold" excuse. Really, well the anesthesiologists says pt is fine, so turn it down.
Our two cancer guys keep it low to mid 60's throughout which is great by me for the long cases with headlights, loupes, etc.
We definitely have the circulator that thinks her comfort is more important that the people operating, but I comfirm normal pt body temperature and then let her have it. Funny thing is she always has this lame "pt is cold" excuse. Really, well the anesthesiologists says pt is fine, so turn it down.
Our two cancer guys keep it low to mid 60's throughout which is great by me for the long cases with headlights, loupes, etc.
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It's great to know that surgeons still have some power (just not at the hospitals I've been exposed to). At these hospitals, the anesthesiologists always use the Barehuggers, but usually say the room should be warmer.
We have this one surgeon who is so cranky (but hilarious) and described the route of a bead of sweat that started from the back of her neck... five minutes later it was ''under [her] bra strap'', then finally "in [her] panties into [her] butt crack". I have to admit I was cracking up the entire case, but it just shows what little respect surgeons get when the culture of the hospital favors the comfort of the nursing staff.
We have this one surgeon who is so cranky (but hilarious) and described the route of a bead of sweat that started from the back of her neck... five minutes later it was ''under [her] bra strap'', then finally "in [her] panties into [her] butt crack". I have to admit I was cracking up the entire case, but it just shows what little respect surgeons get when the culture of the hospital favors the comfort of the nursing staff.
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Do not be embarrased, Quite frankly I think everyone in this field at one point or another has had the experience of sweat running down your body and or face. This is where the circulator should come in. If you build a relationship with these people and just say to them that occasionaly youll need a blot, most I have found are more than willing to assist. To be frank outside of the patient you come second. Their live depends on what "we' as surgeons do. I typically ask for either them to have a few extra alcohol pads on hand to just quickly swipe the back of my neck and or I have a ice jacket available. Depending on the case. Just make sure you have your preferences noted on your preference card so that you dont have these issues when you walk into the OR. The scrubs as everyone knows can and do get extremly hot sometimes it also doesnt help when you get nervous. I myself am 115lbs and 5'4 I have been working with Laproscopic surgery the past four years. My cases tend now to be reasonably quick. So just be thankful that you dont need a stepstool like me. 😉
I hope you find what makes you more comfortable in the room. Take care.
I hope you find what makes you more comfortable in the room. Take care.
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Oh how I miss CV rooms. As soon as I heard "On bypass, cool to 32" I ran to the thermostat and cranked it to 60. You could hang meat in those rooms until they rewarmed. Now I hate trauma and burn rooms, only because they are kept between 72-78deg. A lot of the trauma, vascular, and neuro attendings wear cool shirts. I would definitely wear one too.
This thread reminds me of my Dad's stories from Tulane Med School in New Orleans. They took Gross Antomy in the summertime on the top floor of a non-airconditioned building. The ceiling of the gross lab was a huge skylight where the unrelenting sun would pour through. Daytime temps in the lab ran about 90 degrees F. After dissection, the cadavers were covered with canvas cloths soaked in formalin.
It was that experience that convinced my dad to become a surgeon. During those days, the only airconditioned placed were the OR and the movie theaters. Accordingly, my dad spent a lot of time in both places.
It was that experience that convinced my dad to become a surgeon. During those days, the only airconditioned placed were the OR and the movie theaters. Accordingly, my dad spent a lot of time in both places.
