Battery operated or mercury?

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Kim Buckley — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 20:01:53 GMT

I've got my super quick digital thermometer and I love it! Saves you having to fight for over a minute with a mercury one and no risk of breaking!

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Charlotte says smile — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:13:01 GMT

I dont really mind which I use but I do prefer digital just because if I am taking it on a concious patient it only takes 10secs to read. I have a very nice flexible tip digital one so I quite like that because I know it cant cause any damage should the patient sit move etc.

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Vicky RVN — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 08:53:54 GMT

Correct me if i'm wrong (i prob am!) but i thought the reason people don't use ear ones is cos they're no good on animals?

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Sparky — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 23:16:20 GMT

We had automatic thermometers that u used during a procedure but they just didn't work....I've been at my practice over 3 years and only recently within in the last year started using mercury thermometers...ear type thermometers were suggested....think cost was an issue

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

chris beasley — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 22:54:04 GMT

I like the idea of that one- use to use them on my children when they were little. Would be interested if they are still around. They do still make them for babies - are these the same?

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Sal the 1st — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 22:44:27 GMT

can anybody else remember the company that was making the temperature strips for animals (similar to the forehead strips for kids) in the late 80's/early 90's - from what I remember you held them/ stuck them against a furless bit of skin ( I think it was suggested either inside the pinna or against a bare bit on the abdo) I remember I used them for a while esp on animals under GA - dont think they were fantastically accurate but they did give a rough idea of what was happening temp wise (unless the dog had just come in and had walked through a snow drift!)

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Vicky RVN — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 22:20:23 GMT

[quote user="STRVN"]

You cant get mercury thermometers anymore, well certainly not form dunlops. They have stopped making them, so once your supplier (nvs etc) runs out it will be battery operated ones only. Obv for H and S purposes.

[/quote]

Hmm didn't know that. We have a digital one kicking around somewhere, but mercury is generally used.

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

les punton — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 20:58:24 GMT

we have both, personally I use merc more (maybe because we have more of these than dig) however today vet left on the table whilst we were scanning a dog, I didnt realise and it smashed on the floor .................. nasty

we also have an ear one but never used it yet

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Sandra Taylor RVN, MBVNA — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 20:56:19 GMT

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

S-J — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 20:46:50 GMT

[quote user="Nick Shackleton"]

Check out the blob of mercury!!!! Can't believe I had one of these as a kid!!!

[/quote]

hee hee iv still got one, loadsa fun

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Sparky — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 22:40:23 GMT

Oh my gosh! so freaked out now, not sure i want to use them now..can't see the male vetof my practice changing his ways lol...prefers the mercury...each to their own I guess

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Vicky RVN — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 22:38:06 GMT

[quote user="eghamcb"]turned round to prepare injection and left it there[/quote]

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

chris beasley — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 22:09:58 GMT

I can remember in my student days - a VS had a dog in the consulting room, placed thermometer into rectum, turned round to prepare injection and left it there! It was sucked into the rectum.He had to admit the dog until it passed it. Thank goodness it came out whole. New graduates learn the hard way!!

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

sisterscope1 — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 21:47:19 GMT

Battery operated for all of the reasons stated above, I don't think it's necessary to determine within a fraction of a degC the temp of a patient. Usually monitoring trends rather than absolutes. I think there is a much greater margin of error with mercury thermometers, H&S and patient risks aside.

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Nick Shackleton — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 21:45:51 GMT

Check out the blob of mercury!!!! Can't believe I had one of these as a kid!!!

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Nick Shackleton — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 21:25:54 GMT

We have digital ones that do both!

I prefer digital ones over glass ones cos of H&S implications! I remember an SVN playing around with mercury from a broken thermometer with bare hands!

Althou I had a mercury maze as kid!!!!

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Sparky — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 21:05:03 GMT

good idea...will look that up now! Thanks!

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Caro Laithwaite VN — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 21:01:09 GMT

As c is the offical temp they should only ask you that unless they ask for the conversion calc may be worth learning that for f >>c and c>>f

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Sparky — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 20:28:32 GMT

with the degrees in C/F...I can only remeber the temperature ranges of animals in C.....think they asked me what the range was in my exam and it was in C I think....

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Lisa Whitehouse — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 20:21:34 GMT

we have ear thermometer which is used most but also digital & the option of mercury type, the advantage of mercury is that you can read in degrees C/F always better when every one does it differently. Personally prefer digital

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Sparky — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 20:20:45 GMT

DOH! sorry! i didn't mean to quote the whole thing! duh!!! sorry!

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Caro Laithwaite VN — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 20:20:12 GMT

I agree with kate. and they do break spoke to a vet the other day that witnessed it. The dog died. I prefer digital and if l use old fashioned l have to have someone read it. I was ok till a few years ago but my eyes not good enough now will need reading glasses.

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Sparky — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 20:20:04 GMT

[quote user="Kate Claxton"]

Old thread here

http://www.vetnurse.co.uk/forums/p/1267/7148.aspx#7148

which started about ear thermometers - I'm still horrified that anywhere is still using mercury and encouraging students to do so as well - when these break inside wriggly animals the results are horrific, not to mention the health and safety issues if they are dropped.

As I posted on the old thread, I'm interested in comments about mercury being more reliable. When you mention the errors between the glass/digital, how do you callibrate to ensure it wasn't the mercury that was the incorrect reading? Research in the human field has demonstrated that it takes a minimum of 8 minutes to get a true mercury in glass temperature...do you time 8 minutes while an animal wriggles around?

[/quote]

I never thought of that......blimey, just slighty scary, isn't that why they don't use them on humans anymore? When my sister was in hospital they used battery thermometers...are they really that inaccurate? do u prefer the battery thermometers?

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Kate Claxton DipAVN(Med)VN — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 20:17:14 GMT

Old thread here

http://www.vetnurse.co.uk/forums/p/1267/7148.aspx#7148

Re: Battery operated or mercury?

Sparky — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 20:15:00 GMT

I do prefer the digital....but I can read the mercury and I understand about VNACs wanting students to use them.....if digitals are so off the mark should we use them?