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Potential Errors in Mean Skin Temperature Calculation Due to Thermistor Placement as Determined by Infrared Thermography

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Agache’s Measuring the Skin

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Abstract

The skin surface serves as a thermal interface between our metabolic core and the external environment. For over 200 years, the physiological and medical importance of skin temperature has been recognized. Researchers’ abilities to determine skin temperature variations have improved in accuracy and measurement sensitivity as we progressed from tactile touch to radiometer to thermocouple probes to infrared thermal imaging. The assessment challenge revolves around measuring an “accurate” skin temperature which fluctuates with environmental conditions and within the regions of the body. The quest for precise regional and whole-body skin temperature measures holds the promise of understanding thermoregulatory control and regulation. This chapter discusses the current knowledge of thermoregulation defined by the use of thermocouples, the potential errors that confound our measurements of regional and mean skin temperatures, and the role of infrared thermal imaging (temperature mapping of the skin) in the development of our understanding of the thermal responses of the skin surface as influenced by external stressors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Kinesiology, Auburn University, Aubur, Al, 36849, USA

    David D. Pascoe

Authors
  1. David D. Pascoe
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Correspondence to David D. Pascoe .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Medecine Vasculaire Lab. Ingénierie et de Biologie Cutanées, CHU Besancon Service Dermatologie et, Besancon, France

    Philippe Humbert

  2. San Francisco, California, USA

    Howard Maibach

  3. Department of Dermatology, Saint Jacques University Hospital, Besançon, France

    Ferial Fanian

  4. Univ. Besançon Dépt. Dermatologie, Besançon, France

    Pierre Agache

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© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

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Pascoe, D. (2015). Potential Errors in Mean Skin Temperature Calculation Due to Thermistor Placement as Determined by Infrared Thermography. In: Humbert, P., Maibach, H., Fanian, F., Agache, P. (eds) Agache’s Measuring the Skin. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-26594-0_75-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-26594-0_75-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-26594-0

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