How do pulse oximeters work?
Breathe!
Pulse oximeter is measuring the amount of oxygen that is bound to hemoglobin that is floating around in your blood.
What is oxygen saturation?
Pulse oximeters measure oxygen saturation.
- We breathe oxygen, then the oxygen is passed onto blood.
- Blood has hemoglobin and it carries the oxygen
- The hemoglobin without oxygen is de-oxygenated hemoglobin. The hemoglobin with oxygen is oxygenated hemoglobin
- Oxygen saturation simply refers to the percentage of the available hemoglobin that carries oxygen.
How does pulse oximeter work?
Pulse oximetry uses light to work out oxygen saturation. Light is emitted from light sources which goes across the pulse oximeter probe and reaches the light detector.
When you insert your finger into a pulse oximeter, it beams different wavelengths of light through your finger.
It’s targeting hemoglobin, a protein molecule in your blood that carries oxygen.
Hemoglobin absorbs different amounts and wavelengths of light depending on the level of oxygen it’s carrying. Your pulse oximeter will give you a numerical reading — a percentage that indicates the level of oxygen saturation in your blood.
How do you use it?
A pulse oximeter is a small device that you place your finger snugly inside and within seconds it lights up with numbers indicating your blood oxygen level and heart rate.
Most healthy people will get an oxygen reading around 95 to 98 percent. Some people with existing health conditions may have a lower normal reading. You should check in with your doctor if the number falls to 92 or lower.
Check out Dave Lee’s video
He talks about how effective the apple watch is in measuring the O2 levels.
Thanks Dave!!
Source: IEEE, nytimes, DaveLee
PS. Not an ad for apple!
Story for the world right now.
- Wear a mask! Stay safe!
- Stay safe! Wear a mask!
- Be responsible! Wear a mask!
- Wear a mask! Be responsible!
