By Gilbert Akampa Kakurugu,
NATIONAL
A recent study conducted at two hospitals in Uganda has shown that shorter periods of observation, lower signal quality, and lower oxygen saturation levels decrease the repeatability of pulse oximetry measurements. Pulse oximetry is an essential tool in making optimal clinical decisions and when performing device validation.
The study found that repeatability increased as the duration of recordings increased, but plateaued at 35 seconds. Therefore, health workers who perform pulse oximetry should average oxygen saturation readings over at least 35 seconds to obtain a repeatable measurement.
The study’s results show that training for health workers who perform pulse oximetry, and device manufacturers can enforce this practice with improved device design.
The Global Health Science and practice revealed that further studies should concentrate on within-observer uncertainty in different settings and with different devices and evaluate other causes of uncertainty, such as within-subject variability.
The study was conducted at the Jinja and Gulu Regional Referral Hospitals through the Smart Triages.
James Karugaba, the nursing director at Holy Innocents children’s hospital in Mbarara told our reporter that pulse oximetry said has helped them save very many children since it helps them know children in danger very first hence considering them for emergency care. Karugaba said pulse oximetry is used to see if there is enough oxygen in the blood.
“This information is needed in many kinds of situations, It may be used: During or after surgery or procedures that use sedation,When the capacity of the lungs to transport oxygen into the blood is impaired, blood oxygen saturation declines, potentially putting our organs in danger. A pulse oximeter can quickly detect this drop in oxygen saturation, alerting people of the need for medical intervention.” Karugaba added.
For starters, a pulse oximeter is a probe attached to the patient’s finger that measures the differential absorption of infrared light by oxygenated and deoxygenated haemoglobin in capillaries.
