Exploring the impact of pulse oximeter selection within the COVID-19 home-use pulse oximetry pathways
- PMID: 35140169
- PMCID: PMC8830238
- DOI: 10.1136/bmjresp-2021-001159
Exploring the impact of pulse oximeter selection within the COVID-19 home-use pulse oximetry pathways
Abstract
Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, portable pulse oximeters were issued to some patients to permit home monitoring and alleviate pressure on inpatient wards. Concerns were raised about the accuracy of these devices in some patient groups. This study was conducted in response to these concerns.
Objectives: To evaluate the performance characteristics of five portable pulse oximeters and their suitability for deployment on home-use pulse oximetry pathways created during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study considered the effects of different device models and patient characteristics on pulse oximeter accuracy, false negative and false positive rate.
Methods: A total of 915 oxygen saturation (spO2) measurements, paired with measurements from a hospital-standard pulse oximeter, were taken from 50 patients recruited from respiratory wards and the intensive care unit at an acute hospital in London. The effects of device model and several patient characteristics on bias, false negative and false positive likelihood were evaluated using multiple regression analyses.
Results and conclusions: All five portable pulse oximeters appeared to outperform the standard to which they were manufactured. Device model, patient spO2 and patient skin colour were significant predictors of measurement bias, false positive and false negative rate, with some variation between models. The false positive and false negative rates were 11.2% and 24.5%, respectively, with substantial variation between models.
Keywords: COVID-19; equipment evaluations.
© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2022. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.
Conflict of interest statement
Competing interests: None declared.
Figures
![Figure 1](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/instance/8830238/bin/bmjresp-2021-001159f01.gif)
Similar articles
-
Evaluation of a New Smartphone Powered Low-cost Pulse Oximeter Device.Ethiop J Health Sci. 2022 Jul;32(4):841-848. doi: 10.4314/ejhs.v32i4.22. Ethiop J Health Sci. 2022. PMID: 35950062 Free PMC article.
-
Novel Use of Home Pulse Oximetry Monitoring in COVID-19 Patients Discharged From the Emergency Department Identifies Need for Hospitalization.Acad Emerg Med. 2020 Aug;27(8):681-692. doi: 10.1111/acem.14053. Epub 2020 Jul 23. Acad Emerg Med. 2020. PMID: 32779828 Free PMC article.
-
Accuracy of a portable pulse oximeter in monitoring hypoxemic infants with cyanotic heart disease.Cardiol Young. 2019 Aug;29(8):1025-1029. doi: 10.1017/S1047951119001355. Epub 2019 Jul 15. Cardiol Young. 2019. PMID: 31304897
-
A review of the effect of skin pigmentation on pulse oximeter accuracy.Physiol Meas. 2023 Jun 1;44(5):05TR01. doi: 10.1088/1361-6579/acd51a. Physiol Meas. 2023. PMID: 37172609 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Racial Disparity in Oxygen Saturation Measurements by Pulse Oximetry: Evidence and Implications.Ann Am Thorac Soc. 2022 Dec;19(12):1951-1964. doi: 10.1513/AnnalsATS.202203-270CME. Ann Am Thorac Soc. 2022. PMID: 36166259 Review.
Cited by
-
The Accuracy of Readily Available Consumer-Grade Oxygen Saturation Monitors in Pediatric Patients.Respir Care. 2024 Mar 27;69(4):387-394. doi: 10.4187/respcare.11258. Respir Care. 2024. PMID: 38164568
-
Skin Pigmentation Influence on Pulse Oximetry Accuracy: A Systematic Review and Bibliometric Analysis.Sensors (Basel). 2022 Apr 29;22(9):3402. doi: 10.3390/s22093402. Sensors (Basel). 2022. PMID: 35591092 Free PMC article. Review.
References
-
- WHO . Clinical management clinical management living guidance COVID-19. World Heal Organ 2021:16–44.
MeSH terms
Substances
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical