The Bair Hugger system is a
convective temperature management system used in a hospital or surgery center to maintain a patient's core
body temperature
Thermoregulation is the ability of an organism to keep its body temperature within certain boundaries, even when the surrounding temperature is very different. A thermoconforming organism, by contrast, simply adopts the surrounding temperature ...
. The Bair Hugger system consists of a reusable warming unit and single-use disposable warming blankets for use before, during and after surgery. This medical device launched in 1987 and is currently manufactured by the
3M Company.
Function
The Bair Hugger system uses
convective
Convection is single or multiphase fluid flow that occurs spontaneously due to the combined effects of material property heterogeneity and body forces on a fluid, most commonly density and gravity (see buoyancy). When the cause of the convec ...
warming, also known as forced-air warming, to prevent and treat
perioperative
The perioperative period is the time period of a patient's surgical procedure. It commonly includes ward admission, anesthesia, surgery, and recovery. Perioperative may refer to the three phases of surgery: preoperative, intraoperative, and posto ...
hypothermia
Hypothermia is defined as a body core temperature below in humans. Symptoms depend on the temperature. In mild hypothermia, there is shivering and mental confusion. In moderate hypothermia, shivering stops and confusion increases. In severe ...
.
The system includes two primary components: a warming unit and a disposable blanket. The warming unit is connected by a flexible hose to the single-use blanket. Warm air from the warming unit passes through the flexible hose and into the blanket. Once the warmed air reaches the blanket it exits through a series of
micro-perforations on the underside of the blanket, warming the patient's skin in an area not involved in the surgical procedure.
Performance
The Bair Hugger system warms effectively due to the properties of convection and
radiation; heat transfer improves with the movement of warmed air across the surface of the patient's skin. Up to 64 percent of the patient's body surface may be recruited for heat transfer, depending on which Bair Hugger blanket is used.
History
The Bair Hugger system was originally designed by Scott Augustine, MD of Minnesota.
The Bair Hugger was produced by Arizant, previously known as Augustine Medicine. Augustine resigned from Arizant in 2002, and Arizant was bought by 3M in 2009. Augustine later invented a different type of patient-warming device and formed a separate company to sell his competing device.
The Bair Hugger system received
FDA
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food ...
clearance in 1987.
[U.S. Food and Drug Administration web site, accessed 3/29/16. http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfpmn/pmn.cfm?ID=K873745]
References
External sources
*http://www.bairhugger.com
{{3M
Medical equipment
3M_brands