As the new Omikron virus spreads rapidly, life has once again become challenging. Even for those who are fully vaccinated. Mikron’s R rate is 3, and even many children and vaccinated people become seriously ill once infected. As a result, people must be very careful and keep an eye on themselves and their loved ones. It is very important to detect an infection because medical treatment may soon be required.

Having said that, what is the best way to detect an Omikron contamination? Checking body temperature is the best method. People who become infected will experience a rise in body temperature and often a full-blown fever. We must therefore take our temperature and that of our family members at least twice a day. So selecting the best possible thermometer becomes a very important decision.   

It goes without saying that not all thermometers are created equal. The old-fashioned mercury thermometers are no longer allowed in most countries. There are also electronic rectal thermometers, ear or tympanic thermometers, axillary thermometers, infrared guns, and temporal artery thermometers. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each type of thermometer?

First, you need to decide what is really important when choosing a thermometer. We need a thermometer that is – of course – accurate. As we will use our thermometer several times a day, comfort is important as well – both for children and adults.

Many people do not like to use a rectal thermometer for obvious reasons. While this method of measuring body temperature is accurate, especially children, but also adults, do not appreciate it very much. 

The use of tympanic or ear thermometers may seem simple, but it isn’t. It is difficult to position the thermometer tip within the ear canal at the right spot. This is because the anatomy of the ear canal differs from person to person. The thermometer can be pushed in too deep, which can hurt or even damage the ear drum. When we don’t push it in deeply enough, we’re measuring outside temperature rather than body temperature.

Axillary thermometers are used to measure body temperature by holding them under the arm. These thermometers are easy to use, but they are also highly inaccurate and take precious time.

IR guns or contactless infrared thermometers are used to measure one’s temperature from a distance. All they do is measure the temperature of the skin and not of the blood. Simply measuring the temperature of the skin is of course not accurate as you need the core /bodytemperature of a person.

This is exactly what a temporal artery thermometer does in a very smart manner: it measures the body temperature by measuring the temperature of the blood situated in the temporal artery which is positioned 2 mm below the skin on a person’s forehead. This medical instrument has a fairly large sensor. A gentle swipe of the thermometer gently positioned against the skin across the forehead is enough to measure the temperature of the blood in the temporal artery. As the sensor is quite large, it is nearly impossible to miss the temporal artery.

It results in a non-invasive, easy, fast, and most of all very accurate reading. This is exactly what we, parents as well as doctors and nurses, are looking for. 

The Temporal Artery Thermometer is also very comfortable for children. Using the thermometer a few times a day will soon become a game you play with them. And if they are already asleep, you can still take their temperature. It is a simple and gentle process.

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