Were rectal temps ever the norm among adults??

I know rectal temps far as children go, was the complete norm until the last 15-20 years. But was their ever a time where if you was an adult getting your temp checked, that it would likely be a rectal temp?

I do recall being in the ER one time and seeing a sign that said everyone 12 and under rectal temp required. That was in the early 2000s. I remember being kinda shocked because I thought they had stopped at a much younger age.

It wasn’t common practice for most adults in the United States, even decades ago. I can’t speak for other countries.

Soon as I got old enough to hold a thermometer under my tongue, I stopped getting rectal temps taken. I was probably 5 or 6.

Soon as I got old enough to hold a thermometer under my tongue, I stopped getting rectal temps taken. I was probably 5 or 6.

Pretty much the same here - honestly don't remember ever to have it done so must have been really small when got it done that way. Nowadays, it is a different story - I would love to have my temp taken rectally but those pesky electronic IR thermometers won't fit into the backside 😃

It was definitely very common for adults in France 40 years ago and I believe it still is, though considered old-fashioned. Also, it used to be the norm in French hospitals; if you were an adult or older child and were not incapacitated, you would be given the thermometer to insert rectally.

I also believe rectal is the standard for basal temperature measurements for ovulation determination, so were who want to get pregnant… or not to get pregnant through "natural" means are likely to have much experience with rectal temperature, as it involves taking it every morning when waking up.

I still get rectal temps at my doctor as it is my preferred method and is the most accurate, they also agree. The nursing staff administers my rectal temps and shots if needed, not the doctor. At home, I check my rectal temp daily as was done in my childhood throughout my years.

@Laura41, you're lucky to have found a doctor's office willing to take rectal temps. I believe that is rather unusual in these days of contactless measurements!

I don't think rectal temperatures for adults were ever the norm in the US. Except maybe only in hospitals in the early part of the 20th century up until the 1950s or 60s? But that's just a guess on my part. Maybe someone out there who has more knowledge on this topic can fill us in? However, I've read that rectal temperatures on adults were the norm in countries like France, Sweden, Germany, Netherlands, and Scandinavia back in the age of glass thermometers. But it is no longer the case today. Interested in hearing some feedback from people who come from those parts of Europe.

The advances in Medical technology for certain diagnostics has changed particularly with respect to thermometers and taking temperatures.

What is currently available can range from Quick read to non invasive such as scans.

That has to do do with what is available for that purpose…

…how a temperature is measured via the route may still well be the rectal route/ method, albeit not with mercury thermometers which were gone after years ago for the “ mercury hazard” NOTE: They are still out there ( auction sites)

But it is still likely that in medical venues, for policy reasons or patient situations, rectal temperatures are and may as required , be taken.

In a domestic setting, rectal temperatures may be the preferred method for adults

In a primary care physician’s practice, there probably are those care providers who prefer to still take their adult patient’s temperatures rectally; though it may well be a nurse, or other medical assistant actually performing the procedure.

So, in today’s world of temperature taking, technology has impacted to some degree that protocol.

But I think for the most part the taking of a rectal temperature on an adult , though at times, necessary, is not common.

Key point: As I said there MAY be times/ reasons for a rectal temperature taking.

My last comment: Recently when hit by a UTI I ran a 104F temperature. I got a nurse on a hotline who when I told her my temperature and that it was a rectal measurement, she commented that was the most accurate. It was not the first time I heard medical personnel say that.

On her advice and urging I got to an ER got diagnosed , treated with antibiotics, and recovered. All temps in the ER were by ear.

I don’t think it was ever a practice at doctor visits, but I know for sure it was done in hospitals.

We did rectal temps in the hospital if we felt the oral temp was inaccurate or the pt was not able to hold the thermometer in their mouth.

Worked with a surgeon who required a rectal temp on any ED consults with abdominal pain. He was the bigger pain.

In military service in Europe in the 80-ies it was mandatory rectal. Thermometer had a disposable cover.

@hilenk, it is my preferred method and has been all my life. When i had my first visit with my doctor, I told him this is what I prefer for accuracy and comfort; don't like the probe stuck in my mouth and its hard to breathe. He agreed and noted rectal temps on my chart. That said, it is the nurse who administers the temps and shots. Doctor administered only twice in 5 years.

It has remained a preferred method for me at home as the doc's office no longer employs taking of a rectal temp. I guess I am too shy to request one. I have had to receive a shot from the nurse and be told to lower my briefs for one!

I,m a 71 year old man. back in the late 50's thru 70's, in my experience it was common in all the households within our family's and was no big deal.

I remember living in NH near a teaching collage I was 18 years old and ended up in the hospital with a sever case of the flu. They took my temp rectally.

I wasn't surprised and considered it normal. I guess because it was normal for my upbringing. Actually the young nurse who took care of me on the three days i was there (also in training) went to the head nurse on the first day to see if that doctors order was correct. It was because of the high fever i had. She was embarrassed and was apologizing for having to get my temp that way. I assured her it was no big deal. Side note, every break she had during her shift she spent time with me to talk. We actually hit it off and the day I left she gave me her phone # without me asking. The air head I was I lost the number and never followed thru. Mainly because I met my future wife a few weeks later.

I’ve done some research through AI, and the consensus is that rectal temperature is still the gold standard in European countries, even in 2026. I can’t confirm if that’s accurate. In America, it may still be common in some families, especially within the urban areas.

My home is in Switzerland. I don't get sick often, so can't present a reliable scientific survey, but the few times I have seen a doctor for sick visits, my temperature was taken with a contactless thermometer. I even mentioned once to a doctor that my temperature had been taken rectally at home, but she proceeded anyway to scan my forehead. Based on those rather limited experiences, I don't think that rectal temps are very common here, at least for adults.

I will have an initial consultation with a new GP in a few weeks, so it’ll be interesting to see if she takes my temperature. If so, I may discreetly test the waters for a rectal reading.

While maybe not the norm, they most certainly did happen and probably occurred more frequently than one might think. Back in the day when my wife was in her early 20s, she needed to have surgery to fix a broken nose. An overnight night stay was required. The nurse came by to take her vitals and to check for signs of infection. There weren’t even digital thermometers at that time. With her nose completely bandaged, she was asked by the nurse to roll over onto her side so that her temperature could be taken. She was pretty surprised by the fact that her temperature was about to be taken rectally. She nevertheless complied without question. After rolling over and with nothing underneath her hospital gown, her cheeks were spread and a thermometer was inserted into her rectum.

My mother always took my temperature rectally as long as I lived at home, right up until my mid-20's.

It appears that in the mid-1960s, RTs on adults were still commonplace in American hospitals as evidenced by this brief Time Magazine article. The author describes rectal temperatures as humiliating. Perhaps this is one reason children were normally not allowed to visit patients in the hospital at that time. Can you imagine the embarrassment of a father when his wife tells the kids, "We need to step outside for a few minutes. The nurse is going to take daddy's rectal temperature."

https://time.com/archive/6629126/hospitals-the-rectal-thermometer/