Hospitals are cold places. Temperatures in the Operating Room (OR) typically are in the low 60s, in order to keep healthcare providers, wearing multiple layers of clothing, cool and comfortable. However, low temperatures can have detrimental effects on patients’ health before, during and after surgery.

A two-degree drop in temperature in a hospital room can triple the risk of heart problems and wound infections and increase blood loss among surgery patients. It can also prolong time in the recovery room by 40% and hospital stays by 20%. Anesthesia changes the body's ability to retain and generate heat by making it impossible for people to shiver, a mechanism used by the body to warm itself up. However, after surgery, shivering is not good because it consumes energy and oxygen that the body should use on recovery. In order to keep patients warm, most hospitals use a combination of heated cotton blankets, warmed air covers, and heated IV (Intra-Venous) fluids. However, a large number of surgical patients still do not get enough warming.

A new high-tech gown can change that. The gown is made of a soft, thick material designed for a comfortable fit. It ties at the side for complete wrap-around coverage and a machine blows warm air between layers of paper in the gown to keep patients warm.

The gown is revolutionary because of its forced-air warming technology. Using just a single gown, patients can be clinically pre-warmed before surgery or receive comfort warming as they await a procedure. Once in the OR, the same gown offers clinical warming for select surgical procedures when connected to a warming unit. Moreover, it offers patient-adjustable warming, thus allowing patients to adjust the temperature of the air flowing through the gown to a level that is right for them.

Forced-air warming is said to prevent hypothermia, a condition where the body temperature drops below 96.8°F. This can help reduce patient anxiety and surgical complications,such as hospital-acquired infections.

The gown is bit more expensive for hospitals than warmed-air blankets. However, the majority of them may be adopting it very soon because of a new government regulation. Starting the beginning of the year, hospitals are now required to report on their efforts to maintain normal body temperatures during surgery. For Medicare patients, 2% of reimbursement will be tied to whether hospitals report on this and other quality-related measures.