Pulse oximeter

Taking a pulse is common practice in daily patient care, but so is making a pulse, a hospital procedure patients undergo many times a day to be sure they are in good health. This kind of pulse is emitted from a pulse oximeter, a non-invasive tool in the shape of a clothespin that clips onto a patient’s finger or earlobe. Also called an oxygen saturation monitor, it sends pulses of varying wavelengths of infrared light into the body to measure the percentage of oxygen contained in the blood.

Although everyone equates oxygen with lung function, blood is just as involved in the respiration process. Lungs bring oxygen into the body and hemoglobin, a protein found in red blood cells, carries it through the body. But sometimes people experience a lack of oxygen, perhaps due to anemia, lung disease, high altitude or anesthesia, and when this happens hypoxemia or cyanosis can result. They might find themselves short of breath or with skin that is beginning to turn blue.

The pulse oximeter is attached to a computer monitor that displays the level of oxygen in the hemoglobin and produces an audible signal for each heartbeat. If a patient’s oxygen is low, an alarm will sound and a nurse or doctor will intervene to bring the level of oxygen back up.

Hospitals need many pulse oximeters to perform at their best. At the Respiratory Therapy Support Department of the McGill University Health Centre, a new pulse oximeter is needed so that patients undergoing ventilatory therapy treatment will have the care they require. The cost of one pulse oximeter is approximately $5,000, a small price to pay to keep patients from being blue.

This series is intended to be informative. The McGill University Health Centre Foundation does not endorse any particular manufacturer or model of the equipment shown and described here.