What is SpO2? – Pulse Oximetry – Oxygen Saturation

1. What is SpO2?
2. What does SpO2 mean?
3. What is the normal SpO2 level? What level of SpO2 is dangerous?
4. General Pulse Oximetry information
5. When was the first Pulse Oximeter used?
6. Which types of devices can measure your oxygen saturation level?
7. How can Soma help?

What does SpO2 mean? (Pulse Oximetry)

SpO₂ is an abbreviation for Peripheral Oxygen Saturation, which is a way of saying “how much oxygen is in your blood.” This value is shown as a percentage, representing how much oxygen the red blood cells are carrying through the body. For example, if you get a SpO₂ reading of 98%, it means that 98 out of every 100 red blood cells are carrying oxygen.

What is The Normal SpO2 level? What Level of SpO2 is Dangerous?

General Pulse Oximetry Information

Pulse oximetry uses a pulse oximeter to measure the oxygen saturation in red blood cells. The device will display your blood oxygen level as a percentage. The oximeter is usually placed on a finger, and infrared lights are used to examine the inside of the finger. These lights reflect differently depending on whether they hit a red blood cell with or without oxygen. Then, the oximeter reads how much light was reflected and gives you a reading of your blood oxygenation.

People with lung issues—such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, or pneumonia—or those who temporarily stop breathing during sleep (sleep apnea) are more likely to have low oxygen levels. The ability of pulse oximetry to provide early warnings for many lung-related problems. More generally, doctors often check patients’ oxygen saturation levels during routine checkups because it’s a quick and easy way to identify potential health problems—or rule them out.

When was the first pulse oximeter Used?

In the 1860s, it was discovered that hemoglobin was responsible for transporting oxygen in the blood. However, it took another seventy years before this knowledge could be directly applied to humans. In 1939, Karl Matthes developed an early version of pulse oximeters by using red and infrared light to continuously measure oxygen saturation levels in the ear. During World War II, Glenn Millikan further advanced this technology to address the issue of pilots blacking out at high altitudes. He connected an ear oximeter to a system that supplied oxygen directly into the pilot’s mask when oxygen levels dropped too low. Over the next two decades, blood oxygen saturation moved from the laboratory to clinical settings, leading to the invention of an eight-wavelength ear oximeter in 1964. However, this device was primarily limited to sleep laboratories and pulmonary studies due to its bulkiness and cost.

The first true pulse oximeter was invented in 1972 by Takuo Aoyagi, a bioengineer for Nihon Kohden. Initially, Aoyagi was attempting to track the dilution of dye using an ear oximeter to measure cardiac output. However, he discovered that the noise created by the subject’s pulse was solely due to the change in arterial blood flow. After years of work, Aoyagi developed a two-wavelength device that accurately measured oxygen saturation levels by utilizing the changes in arterial blood flow. Susumu Nakajima then used this technology to create the first usable clinical device for pulse oximetry, which was tested on patients starting in 1975. However, it wasn’t until the early 1980s that Biox released the first successful commercial pulse oximeter for the respiratory care market. By 1982, Biox received reports of their devices being used to…

Which Types of Devices Can Measure Your Oxygen Saturation Level?

Generally speaking, there are three types of devices medical professionals use to measure a patient’s oxygen saturation levels:  a multipurpose or multiparameter, a patient monitor, a bedside or handheld pulse oximeter, or a fingertip spot-check pulse oximeter.  The first two categories of monitors are able to measure the patient continuously and generally can display or print a graph of their oxygen saturation over time.  The spot-check oximeter is designed primarily to take a snapshot recording of the patient’s saturation at a particular moment in time, so these are primarily used during checkups in clinics or doctor’s offices.

Multiparameter monitors can include devices such as the GE CARESCAPE B650.

Bedside monitors include the Masimo Radical-7.

Handheld pulse oximeters include the Covidien PM10N.

Finally, this last category spot-check monitors, which are not sold by Soma Tech Int are manufactured by many companies and generally look like this:

How can Soma Help?

Soma Tech maintains a constant stock of continuous SpO2 measurement devices for medical professionals from full-featured patient monitors to bedside pulse oximeters to small handheld devices.  As a vendor-neutral supplier, we are able to help our hospital, surgery center or clinic customers consider their options among many models and manufacturers so contact your dedicated sales rep to learn which model would work best for your facility!