Rectal temperature in a medical examination

Have you ever had your rectal temperature taken during a school, university, sport, military, work, insurance medical exam?

How did you react to that?

Had it taken in ER once when I was 20, by force. I was drunk and beligerent , had head injury from being in a fight. I do remember getting sober real fast when I felt that thick sheeth of the electronic job being jammed up in me with several people holding me down and watching the whole thing. I love taking temperatures though.

I would love to have my temperature taken rectally..One of my favorite things about going to my doctors for my yearly exam is having him do the rectal exam. I have had both male and female doctors give my rectal exam. I just love that feeling.

Yes every year during my physical. my doc doesn't believe in any other sort

Quite often if your temperature is subnormal or even high when taken orally then the doctor or nurse will take it again rectally because it is always accurate that way. It's normally pretty quick as I guess they have it ready. You just lay back, roll over, they uncover the gown and your spread and stuck before you know it when the slimy thing. Awkward part is waiting for the reading like this.

I cannot think of a single instance that a doctor or nurse has ever taken a rectal temp ... this was much to my relief when I was young, but now I have different thoughts on the matter ... ha ha

Not since I was a very young child - maybe 5 or 6 yo. This would have been in the mid 60's.

Had mine taken twice rectally, before and after a blood gas analysis. The first temperature check was a breeze, the second was a little uncomfortable because the nurse stuck the probe a lot further. The blood gas analysis hurts like hell, for those who've never had it done.

Had mine taken lots of times, dont remember how many , seemed like everytime I went there. The dr and nurse were older and were always real hot to poke me in the butt with a thermometer no matter what. I could go in for a tb shot and they would have my laying face down on table with pants down to check that temp. I always hated it. Got erect everytime from it though. Strange.

Sadly, no.

Yes. When I was a child, little league required a medical check-up to be accepted. I remember our pediatrician's nurses having me lay on the exam table face-down and taking my temperature rectally each time. This was in the 60's, so it was far more common.

Never .

My doctor as kid and teen took temps rectally to age 13 and then his nurse asked you how you wanted it. My Temp was taken before all exams, So yes when i needed a school exam or an exam to go to boy scout camp i got my rectal temp taken. I never minded them as i hated oral temps and still do.

When I was a kid, I always had a rectal temperature taken. I also got rectal temps when I was in the hospital one time. Once I realized I wasn't getting a shot, I really didn't mind. The nurse was an older lady who always called me "young man". When she was done she'd give my bottom a pat and pull up my drawers.

While being somewhat involved in boy scout physicals (back in the early 70s) for going to summer camp, there was never any space to add any type of temperature taken on the BS physical forms. Of course, that is not saying that a particular doctor or nurse wanted temperatures taken also. Most doctors that I have been involved with always were on the rush schedule and would not have wanted to take the time for a rectal or oral temp. Today may be a different story with all the super fast scanner types being used now.

My doctor as kid took temps rectally when I went for a check up

Had mine taken twice rectally, before and after a blood gas analysis. The first temperature check was a breeze, the second was a little uncomfortable because the nurse stuck the probe a lot further. The blood gas analysis hurts like hell, for those who've never had it done.

I can second the fact that blood gas analysis is painful, one of the most painful sticks I have ever had, and I have had a lot of IVs in my life. As for rectal temps, I have had a few during hospital stays. The doctors will order them if they think they might be missing a fever with the oral or forehead method. I even had my own personal digital once when I was in infection isolation. The nurse labeled it "For Rectal Use Only." Got a kick out of that, and I even took it with me after discharge.

I've had it taken rectally during a clinical trial I volunteered for and was compensated for. I also had it taken rectally at home by a visiting nurse that was sent as per my MDs direction, and it was her call to have the nurse take a rectal measurement.

@BENEFACTOR When, where and why... How old were you? What kind of study was this?

@jds4med The Trial was in NYC, I was in my forties, and I didn't ask why it was taken anally, as it was not a big deal for me. I think it was a study related to liver conditions. It's been a long time, so I'm not remembering all the nuances other than, yes when my vitals were done, the temperature was rectal. What I do know is when I left, I had a nice check. Hope that answers your questions.

Nope never during them exams and usually done either in my mouth or my ear. Now for my regular medical visits yes get it took rectally everytime but that is only because my doctor is a real good friend of my girlfriend and think she told her too always take it that way as last year the nurse for her...took it that way and really wasn't alarmed and was kinda for the nurse as it was a new lady as the previous years

It was her regular nurse and she retired so was kinda wondered about the new nurse as she is a very young beautiful lady in her late 20's and she was looking at my chart and asked me is it normal for you at your age in my late 30s to get your temperature took that way as that usually doesn't happen for gentlemen like yourself and she said I would like to ask the doctor to make sure that isn't a error and I was like in a laughing matter "oh no that is right and it's my girl having fun as the doctor is her best friend and that is how they have always took it for years since I been her patient"..

She then was like okay and started to get everything ready and I rolled over on the table...pretty nice beginning to a great day and actually the new nurse really started to talk to me more after I told her that and was like who is your girlfriend and is she a nurse as you seem to know alot about all this and "was like you don't even want too know what goes on outside of here and what tortures they both put me thru in a laughing matter" and give it time and you will probably join them one day and then came the huge smile on her face that I wasn't expecting and that told me she was a freak inside:-).

But hasn't happen that as I ask my girl if she knew her and she was like nope and really after that nothing more came of it but for me I would love to see her in classic uniform and cap as she was looking amazing in scrubs so could only image!.

No, I wish. Last time I was by the doctor, the nurse said, "Let me get your temperature" and went to get the thermometer. I was hoping it'd be rectal, but it ended up being in my ear.

When she recorded my temperature on the computer, there was a space to choose what kind it was and rectal was one of the options, so that gives me hope that I'll get a rectal temp from them one day.

During a routine medical check up i never got it.

I went today morning to the doc, but i have the flue.

He asked me about my temp and i answered i think my thermometer is broken, it works not correctly, than the doc want take it.

First i got the thermometer under my arm, but i held it not correctly in the position so the result was around 35,8 C.

The doc said this is no good result, we should check it again, but the oral way, i answered, i never will put a thermometer in my mouth, you can measure my temp every other position but never in my mouth!

He said ok then we only can do it the rectal way, but i want to know your temperature.

I said to him, when it must be so do it.

And so i got my temp the rectal way, with the result 38,4 C

I have never had a temperature taken rectally in any genuine medical situation, more often it has been taken in-ear, but certainly in examinations as a play patient.

I have never had my rectal temp taken in a real life situation but to have it taken during an exam would be a great roleplay scenario

I don't have any memories of a rectal temp in any of those situations, or at least in the ones I've personally experienced. I think for me rectal temps didn't see use beyond home.

That said my earliest memory of the doctor's is around 6, and I distinctly recall worrying about the thermometer. So maybe there was something to that.

Maybe before I was old enough to remember.

I barely remember rectal temperatures as a small kid. Not since except for fun.

I have only a very vague memory of getting it taken rectally once at the pediatrician when I was maybe 3. Otherwise it was oral at the doctor - not the case at home, though. I did get one r/t in the emergency room when I was maybe 5 or 6, but was too sick to care much about it.

The rule at the pediatric clinic that I had to go to until college was rectal until age 9. At home my mom switched to oral when I was 6 and started school. I liked school and did not want to miss it or other activities. I tried to get the oral thermometer up to normal and then not keep it under my tongue so it would not indicate a fever, but I usually had to go to the clinic anyway for whatever other symptoms that prompted checking my temperature.

Between 6 and 9 the nurses at the clinic were taking my rectal temperature. It naively did not occur to me that they saw appointment notes that said something like cough but no fever and measured a fever with the rectal temperature.

When I started school I also became more independent and talked my mom into staying in the reception area of the large clinic. That was not hard because it was more pleasant than a chair in the corner of one of the 10 small exam rooms. It meant that she was not directly available for the nurses to ask about no fever at home.

My dad drove our only car to work so my mom had to take me to the clinic on the bus. From 9 I usually went by myself - it was a different era than today. I finally had my first oral temperature at the clinic during my annual checkup when I turned 9.

Growing up I got frequent potential strep throats. The nurse took my oral temperature when I visited for one a few months later and I tried to keep it from showing much of a fever. She asked if I kept it under my tongue. I said "yes" of course, but was not a good liar. The nurse said that she was going to take it again, and I was soon face down on the exam counter with a rectal thermometer in my bottom. It revealed the truth. The nurse said something like "that's what I thought". She must have made a note in my file because thereafter until I was 15 the clinic took my rectal temperature. That made more many embarrassing scenes.

Fortunately the nurses did not tell my mom or I would have gotten a major spanking when my dad found out. It is also possible that they did and she thought rectal temps were punishment enough.