Effect of an Insulation Device in Preventing Hypothermia during Magnetic Resonance Imaging Examinations for Dogs and Cats under General Anesthesia

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Magnetic resonance imaging examinations require general anesthesia, and it is difficult to prevent a decrease in body temperature because a machine for warming the body cannot be placed in the magnetic resonance imaging room, which must have a low room temperature. In this study, we created a heat insulating device that does not affect magnetic resonance imaging and examined the effectiveness of this device for dogs and cats undergoing magnetic resonance imaging examinations. In the dogs and cats wearing bubble wrap and down cloth blanket, the decrease in body temperature was minimal. The heat insulating device developed in this study protected the animals from the cold air and prevented heat loss from the body surface, minimizing a decrease in body temperature. The results obtained in this study suggest that dogs and cats requiring magnetic resonance imaging can be protected from hypothermia due to general anesthesia without the need for special machinery. ABSTRACT: Dogs and cats under general anesthesia may develop hypothermia. When performing a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination, it is not possible to place a magnetic material in the MRI room, and MRI equipment requires a low room temperature. This study investigated the effectiveness of a heat insulating device that prevented hypothermia during MRI examinations in dogs and cats. The animals that underwent MRI examinations under general anesthesia were divided into control groups (no covering) and heat insulating groups (wearing bubble wrap and down cloth blankets), and their body temperatures were measured before and after the MRI examinations. The changes in body temperatures were as follows: control dogs (n = 17), median of −1.0 (from −2.5 to 0.3) °C; heat insulated dogs (n = 7), −0.3 (from −0.8 to 0.2) °C; control cats (n = 14), −1.85 (from −2.7 to −0.6) °C; and heat insulated cats (n = 12), −0.8 (from −1.5 to −0.1) °C. These results revealed that the bubble wrap and down cloth blanket significantly prevented hypothermia and heat loss from the body surface during MRI examinations of dogs and cats.