by Willow Support & Polyclinic Dr. Obad

Pulse oximetry testing

Pulse oximetry is a non-invasive test that measures the oxygen saturation level of your blood, providing crucial information about how well oxygen is being transported to the parts of your body furthest from your heart, such as your arms and legs.

It is a valuable tool for quickly and accurately assessing oxygen levels in the blood, helping healthcare providers make informed decisions about diagnosis and treatment.

Main purposes of Pulse oximetry tests:

Monitoring Oxygen Levels: It helps in monitoring the oxygen levels in patients with conditions that affect blood oxygen levels, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, pneumonia, lung cancer, anemia, heart attack, heart failure, and congenital heart disease.

Assessing Treatment Effectiveness: Doctors use it to evaluate how well treatments, such as supplemental oxygen therapy or ventilators, are working.

Detecting Hypoxemia: It quickly detects hypoxemia (low blood oxygen levels), which can be critical in emergency situations.

Pre-Surgical and Post-Surgical Monitoring: It is used to monitor oxygen levels during and after surgical procedures that require sedation.

Evaluating Physical Activity: It assesses how well a patient tolerates increased physical activity and whether they need supplemental oxygen during exercise.

Sleep Studies: It is used in sleep studies to evaluate conditions like sleep apnea, where breathing may stop momentarily during sleep.

Use of Pulse oximetry tests

Attachment: The pulse oximeter is a small, clip-like device that is typically attached to a finger, toe, or earlobe. It uses light beams to measure the oxygen saturation of the blood.

Procedure: The device emits light through the blood in the finger (or other attachment site) and measures changes in light absorption in oxygenated or deoxygenated blood. This process is painless and quick.

Readings: The device provides a reading of the oxygen saturation level (SpO2) and pulse rate within seconds. Normal readings usually range from 95% to 100%.

Continuous Monitoring: In critical care settings, the pulse oximeter may remain attached to continuously monitor oxygen levels, especially in patients with unstable oxygenation.

Home Use: Some patients use pulse oximeters at home to monitor their oxygen levels, especially those with chronic respiratory or cardiac conditions.