Fluid and blood warming devices are useful in situations of massive transfusions and in pediatric patients. However, the initial cost and disposable nature of many of these devices are a major hindrance in their efficient utilization. We report a simple cost-effective means of warming blood and other fluids, consisting of intravenous tubing coiled around the hose of a convective body warmer before its connection to the patient. A simple experiment using normal saline as fluid and a plastic bottle as a receptacle was also conducted to quantitate and validate the temperature rise by our technique. Overall temperature increase was a mean (± SD) of 6.11°C ± 3.17°C. The rise in temperature was highest (7.57°C ± 3.88°C) with flow rates below 10 mL/min and a higher temperature setting of 42°C. Such low-cost techniques help overcome resource deficits in developing countries and improve patient care.
Keywords: Blood warming method; cost-effective; innovation.
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