Thermal Imaging in Old and Frail in the Community

A Study to Assess Thermal Comfort of Frail Older People in a Care Home Setting.

This study aims to test whether infrared thermal imaging using a non-touch, non-ionising, thermal camera system is feasible and reliable as an independent technique for thermal comfort assessment in older people and frail older people living in a care home and with or without mild cognitive impairment.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Old Age; Debility
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Infra red thermal imaging

Detailed Description

Thermal comfort (TC) is a complex interaction involving physiological, social, cultural and clothing factors. In hospital and in care homes, health-issues (frailty, dementia, immobility) can affect a person's perception of TC.

In the UK 18,000 care homes provide living-communities for approximately 400,000 people. Many are old/frail and vulnerable to indoor chilling. A quality indicator for a good ''home'' environment is related to TC. However, in multiplyoccupied rooms TC varies between individuals. The challenge in health-assessment is in identifying ''uncomfortable'' residents (too hot/too cold). As TC is a subjective perception; a carer cannot reliably predict TC in another person.

The objectives are to use infra-red thermal imaging (IRTI) to 'see' the body temperature map, to demonstrate prevalence of TC/thermal discomfort, to demonstrate whether there is correspondence/dissociation between TC self-report and IRTI-measured body/extremity (hand) temperature.

The study aims to establish if TC can be predicted by an independent non-invasive imaging device

Expected achievements are a two-way pathway to health impact:

1. identification of eligible adults via NHS intermediary care- and awaiting care home residency
2. expert guidance and collaboration with NHS partners
3. translation of results from community to NHS setting e.g. stoke/aged care medicine for improved thermal care on the hospital wards Longer-term the expected achievement (5-7 years)-working with NHS colleagues and design/product development teams is expected to lead towards a commercialisation pathway.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 39
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United Kingdom
  • Sheffield, United Kingdom, S10 2JF
    • Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 60 years to 105 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Care home residents who are:

• Aged over 60 to a maximum age of 105 years
• Able to sit comfortably for up to 20 minutes without marked agitation.
• Ability to understand, read and speak English.

Exclusion Criteria:

Care home residents who are/have:

• Severe dementia
• Unable to hold a conversation
• Who do not wish to take part in the study
• Unable to speak or understand English
• Unable to sit with other residents
• Who are severely agitated or unsettled

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Other: Thermal Comfort; Infra red thermal image	Other: Infra red thermal imaging; thermal image using a non-touch, non-ionising, thermal camera system

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Thermometer	Body Temp: degrees whether an older persons perceptions about thermal comfort is best predicted by their body temperature from the thermometer in Degrees Centigrade. Their temp will be compared to their self reported thermal comfort.	Baseline
Thermal Imaging comparison	whether an older persons perceptions about thermal comfort is best predicted by the image that the thermal camera provides (known as a thermal map) along with the data (temperature values) that can be extracted from the thermal image particularly over the area of interest which in this study is the hands and forearm. The thermal image will be compared to self-reported thermal comfort.	Baseline

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Collaborators: Sheffield Hallam University
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Charmaine Childs, Sheffield Hallam University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): March 7, 2017
• Primary Completion (Actual): October 1, 2018
• Study Completion (Actual): October 1, 2018

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: March 13, 2019
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 20, 2019
• First Posted (Actual): March 21, 2019

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 22, 2019
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 20, 2019
• Last Verified: March 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Thermal Comfort
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pathologic Processes; Frailty
• Other Study ID Numbers: STH19634

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No