Background: Temperature measurement is a vital part of daily neonatal care. Accurate measurements are important for\ndetecting deviations from normal values for both optimal incubator and radiant warmer functioning. The purpose of\nmonitoring the temperature is to maintain the infant in a thermoneutral environmental zone. This physiological zone is\ndefined as the narrow range of environmental temperatures in which the infant maintains a normal body temperature\nwithout increasing his or her metabolic rate and thus oxygen consumption. Although the temperature measurement\ngold standard is the skin electrode, infrared thermography (IRT) should be considered as an effortless and reliable tool\nfor measuring and mapping human skin temperature distribution and assist in assessing thermoregulatory reflexes.\nMethods: Body surface temperature was recorded under several clinical conditions using an infrared thermography\nimaging technique. Temperature distributions were recorded as real-time video, which was analyzed to evaluate mean\nskin temperatures. Emissivity variations were considered for optimal neonatal IRT correction for which the compensation\nvector was overlaid on the tracking algorithm to improve the temperature reading. Finally, a tracking algorithm was\ndesigned for active follow-up of the defined region of interest over a neonate�s geometry.\nResults: The outcomes obtained from the thermal virtual sensor demonstrate its ability to accurately track different\ngeometric profiles and shapes over the external anatomy of a neonate. Only a small percentage of the motion detection\nattempts failed to fit tracking scenarios due to the lack of a properly matching matrix for the ROI profile over neonate�s\nbody surface.\nConclusions: This paper presents the design and implementation of a virtual temperature sensing application that can\nassist neonatologists in interpreting a neonate�s skin temperature patterns. Regarding the surface temperature, the\ninfluence of different environmental conditions inside the incubator has been confirming.
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